


Decipher the Past

by KrystalM



Series: Past and Future [2]
Category: Big Hero 6 (2014)
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Bromance, Hiro Hamada & Tadashi Hamada are Brothers, Hiro Hamada & Tadashi Hamada are Not Related, M/M, Not dead Tadashi, Older Hiro
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-19
Updated: 2015-03-23
Packaged: 2018-03-13 18:35:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 76,293
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3392012
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KrystalM/pseuds/KrystalM
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After two years since Tadashi Hamada died, Hiro had tried everything in his power to move on. It worked until the second year of his brother's death anniversary. When a new customer came into Aunt Cass's cafe, Hiro's world is once again turned upside down when the said customer looked exactly like Tadashi. What happens when he found out that he even has the same name? Tadashi Takachiho—<em>who is he</em>?</p><p>[Hiro/Tadashi deep brotherly bond]</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is a continuation from 'Even After Everything'~ I decided to add a continuation to this and make this plot into a multi-chaptered fic~ Anyways, this is the real deep brotherly Hiro/Tadashi or if you want and if you squint really closely, maybe Hidashi but mostly this is about a family/brother thing. Also, I did research on who Tadashi was based on found out he was based on Tomeo Takachiho from the manga. So, I thought to use that last name. So, this is like Not Dead!Tadashi kinda thing with a twist~ Enough rambling, hope you enjoy!
> 
> Disclaimer: Not mine. Nay, nai, iie, anya, anyo, tidak, no. This is not mine. Not even Tadashi's 'new' last name. No, all belongs to Marvel, the creator of BH6 and Disney. I'm just a fan wanting to write about this fandom. 
> 
> Any hates or flames will be used to burn my marshmallows for me~ Do you want some?
> 
> Catch me here too!
> 
> [Wattpad](http://www.wattpad.com/user/KrystalM) | [FFNet ](http://www.fanfiction.net/~xokrystalmox) | [GoodReads](https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/42035367-krystal-m) | [Tumblr](http://thekmuniverse.tumblr.com/)

[  
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The sky darkened slightly as he looked out of the window. Placing his hand against his right cheek, he sighed silently. The soft humming of the car was all that filled the small void inside. Nothing was exchanged as his tired eyes tried its best to stay open.

 

“Are you tired?” a silent, worried voice asked as he glanced at the woman next to him. She was the one driving this car, getting to their destination of the day. He just pulled out a smile before dropping it and hunched his shoulders forward a bit. Stretching his hands as far forward as he could, he mewled when the tired muscles were pulled. Looking back at her, he just shook his head, answering her question.

 

“Not really, Aunt Cass,” he said carefully. She furrowed her eyebrows as she kept her eyes straight ahead on the road.

 

“Alright,” she said finally after a few short seconds. Silence enveloped between them as he looked back outside of the window. Zooming past other cars, he noticed how the colours mixed and mashed before they turned into a steady stream of white nothingness. He felt his heart tugging at that thought, somehow realising that that was how he was feeling right now.

 

Blank, as if nothing mattered. The reality was crueller today even though nothing bad happened to him. Nothing bad had to happen to him anyway, he muttered darkly in his mind. It already did and now, they were on their way to pay respect to the aftermath of that said bad happening. His heart clutched tightly as the familiar dark feeling coiled deep inside.

 

Two years, it had been two years and yet, he still couldn’t stop himself from feeling lost.

 

When he had gone back to San Fransokyo Institute of Technology (SFIT), he thought he had forgotten about this pain. But at night, when the loneliness would hit him hard, the dull ache would return. It wouldn’t blur him like it did when he first lost his brother, but it was there. About a fraction of it still lived inside of him every day and he was sure, it wouldn’t leave him no matter how long he waited this out.

 

“You’re quite silent though,” Cass said, jerking Hiro from his daydream as he looked at her. Leaning against his passenger seat with a sigh, he smiled.

 

“I don’t have much to say, I suppose,” he said, somehow still finding his deep voice a bit off. It had been almost a year or so since he had gone through puberty. It was like a whole mix-up of hormones and stuff and suddenly, he was no longer that fourteen year-old-boy. He was slightly taller than Aunt Cass but not as tall as Tadashi was if he was still alive. His hair was still as messy as he liked, sometimes irking Aunt Cass for its messiness. He would just laugh it off with a sassy comeback saying it attracted girls.

 

“Hiro,” Cass continued, her voice sounding affectionate. “It’s going to be alright, okay?”

 

“I know,” he said, his smile faltered a bit before morphing into a grin. “Hey, I’m still saving the world, aren’t I?”

 

Cass just chuckled, rolling her eyes at her nephew’s words. The truth was, Big Hero 6 was quite inactive nowadays. It turned out that after the Yokai, or Robert Callaghan’s scheme, San Fransokyo was quite a quiet place. There wasn’t much heavy crime that the police couldn’t handle. In the end, Hiro ended up spending his days inside of the ‘nerd lab’, fixing up his latest inventions and upgrading Baymax once in a while in the garage of the café.

 

“That’s nice,” Cass replied humourlessly as Hiro chuckled and looked back out of the window. “But seriously, Hiro. Everything’s going to be fine, alright?”

 

Hiro just nodded, suddenly not being able to reply. It was fine all this time but for the future? He wasn’t so sure. If he could change back time, he would've stopped his older brother from heading straight to his death or follow him, for the sake that he could end up with him wherever he was right now. But he knew deep inside that if his brother didn’t die, then San Fransokyo would’ve been destroyed somehow.

 

It was one sacrifice for million others.

 

But it was still him dying.

 

It was still him leaving Hiro behind.

 

After he had fallen asleep hugging Baymax that morning, he thought he heard his brother’s voice somewhere around him. Staying and watching him as Hiro slept. But when he woke up, he couldn’t find anybody. Somehow, he had felt as if his life was going to change again and it shook him inside.

 

Pushing away the thoughts, he just remained focused for today. He needed to visit Tadashi first.

 

* * *

 

 

Tugging at his black jacket, he walked to his brother’s grave with Aunt Cass following him. The wind blew gently against them as Hiro sighed and held onto his bouquet of white lilies tightly in his hand. As they neared the small engraved stone, Hiro felt the swirling negative emotions filling inside of him once again. Cass placed a hand on his shoulder before she gave it a small squeeze. Hiro smiled before he bent down a bit and placed the flowers in front of the stone.

 

“Hey, Tadashi,” Cass said suddenly as Hiro chuckled slightly, his eyes growing blurry a bit. “Two years, huh?”

 

The wind howled gently, cooing in their ears, answering her question. Hiro felt goose bumps on his skin as he rubbed his arm slowly. Somehow, today the sky was being extra melancholy. “The café’s going well, just so you know. Mochi misses you. That cat is—you know,” Cass continued as she chuckled a bit. “God, Tadashi,” Cass said softly, her voice scrunching deep in slight disappointment and sadness. “I miss you so much. Hiro misses you so much. Everybody misses you, Tadashi. I hope you’re alright wherever you are.”

 

Hiro felt the hot tears threatening to spill as Cass sighed loudly, her voice shaky. “I love you, Tadashi,” Cass said finally, somehow unable to stop a few tears from escaping her eyes. Quickly wiping them, she turned around and looked at Hiro. “I’ll see you in the car.” Messing up his hair a bit, she walked away, leaving Hiro alone to stare at the tombstone.

 

“Hey,” Hiro said softly. “I’m sixteen now.”

 

He could imagine Tadashi’s chuckle and that big goofy grin of his as he nods at Hiro. Hiro couldn’t help but to laugh a bit as the tears finally slipped past his eyes and down his cheeks. Sliding down until his right knee touched the green grass, he sighed and gently placed his right hand on the soft mass of soil. Tracing it gently, he felt the heavy sadness growling inside of him.

 

“I miss you, Tadashi,” he choked out the words. “I miss you so much that sometimes I get so angry at you. I wanted to yell at you for leaving me behind to save someone like—like _Callaghan_ ,” Hiro spoke, the words coming out in rush anger and frustration. “I thought about even making a time machine and stop you from doing something so stupid like that but—but, your words echoed in my mind every time I tried to.”

 

‘ _Someone has to help_.’

 

“Someone has to help,” Hiro quoted his brother’s last words to him before shaking his head gently and looking up from the tombstone and wiped his eyes. “But…as much as it pains me to see you like this…you did the right thing.”

 

“ _I love you_ , Tadashi. More than you could ever know. I just wish I could say it to you one last time.”

 

With that, he took in a huge breath of air and steadied himself before getting up. Patting on his knee, he sniffed a bit before looking back at the tombstone and smiling. “I’ll see you soon, Nii-san.”

 

With that he finally turned around and walked away, somehow feeling slightly better. Just ahead, he could see Aunt Cass, leaning against her car, waiting for him. Smiling at her, they both got into the car and drove off, heading back home.

 

* * *

 

Once he had reached home, he had quickly walked up the stairs to get to his room. He needed to change and head back to SFIT. He still had classes to attend to. Without missing a beat, he had pulled off his clothes and hurriedly changed into his blue worn out hoodie and black jeans. Taking his bag, he sighed before looking around his room and found his brother’s cap. The only memento he had after Tadashi passed away.

 

Grabbing the cap and wearing it over his head, he quickly patted Mochi who was lazing around on his bed and rushed out of his room. Jogging down the stairs, he quickly spotted Cass, who was just fixing her dress before he headed to her and kissed her cheek. “I’ll see you soon, Aunt Cass.”

 

“Oh!” she said in surprise as she watched Hiro rushing out of the café. Shaking her head, she went ahead and opened her café for the public. Hiro dashed down the streets, trying his best not to get hit by random passing cars. He was still too young to get a car licence, so besides walking, he could take the bus. But he doubted there would be any busses to the institute right now, so he was left with running.

 

His hair was even messier and he was sure that he was sweating like some wet dog when he had finally reached to SFIT. He was panting heavily as he cursed himself inside for his lack of physique. He hated sports, with gleaming fire inside of him. He just didn’t understand why some people enjoyed running for the sake of _fun_. It wasn’t fun. Messing up your coordination and gaining more than enough lactic acid to poison an army inside of you was definitely not Hiro’s definition for fun.

 

Shaking those thoughts out, he stiffly started to walk into the institute. He didn’t have to take another step before he saw Gogo Tomago, riding her bicycle in high speed. Well, it wasn’t really a bicycle, it was more like an electromagnetic ride. She spotted him as she passed him, quickly turning around and halting into a silent screech in front of him. Popping her bubble gum even after all these years, she looked at him with a silent smile.

 

“Hey, Gogo,” Hiro said as he walked around her to get inside of the building. Gogo just followed him, getting off from the ride and dragging it next to her.

 

“Hey,” she said quietly. “You visited him?” she asked, Hiro knowing full well to what she was implying. Hiro nodded as he sighed and fixed his bag so it hugged his shoulders a bit more comfortably.

 

“Yeah,” he answered quietly as she nodded, still chewing the bubble gum.

 

“We’re going to visit him later,” she said as Hiro nodded. “Wasabi said to give the family the honour first.”

 

“He’s right,” he agreed as he chuckled before looking at her. “Don’t you ever stop chewing?”

 

“I do,” she said uninterested with that insult. “I just choose not to now.”

 

“Ha ha,” Hiro said dryly as he rolled his eyes at her. They remained silent as they went into the institute, already heading to the lab they shared. The classes wouldn’t start for another thirty minutes, Hiro noted, so he didn’t see any problem by dropping into the lab for a while. It took them five minutes before Hiro reached the lab and walked in, already grinning like his usual self when he saw Honey Lemon trying to add some kind of chemicals into a flask and squealing when it turned light green to orange.

 

“Hey, nerds,” Hiro joked as Wasabi waved.

 

“Hey, Hiro,” he said as the younger Hamada walked to his small working station and placed his bag there before sitting on the comfy chair. Looking around, he noticed that Fred wasn’t around. Raising an eyebrow, he wondered where this man could’ve gone. He was always with them and to find him not here, it felt a bit incomplete.

 

“Where’s Fredzilla?” Hiro asked as Wasabi glanced at him and sighed.

 

“At home,” he said. “He’ll be here soon. He slept in, or something. You know, Fred.”

 

Hiro laughed before he nodded and turned around to his table, noticing that there were some loose screws and metals lying around. “Huh,” he said softly before picking up what seemed like a small box he created two days ago. He couldn’t really figure out what to do with this. It was just something he created at the spur of moment, something that just popped into his mind at first and then gone by the next minute. He tried his best to make it work, but at the end, it remained as some useless box. It didn’t intrigue him anymore, so he tossed it aside and opened up his sketch book.

 

Inside, he had drawn or sketched some of his inventions he wanted to create. It wasn’t the best sketching technique but it was close second and he could at least make out the figure of the invention so he knew how the machine will look like when it was done. But somehow, today, he didn’t feel like screwing around some random parts together.

 

He just wanted to look at the sketches and flip through the pages for more.

 

Suddenly, before he could react, a huge loud bang exploded inside of the lab, suddenly covering half of the lab in light orange colour. Hiro was so shocked that he ended up toppled out from his chair, landing flat on the ground on his back with the sketch book on his face.

 

“What was that?” Wasabi screeched as he looked at Honey Lemon, who was blinking at them, covered from head to toe in light orange. “Honey?”

 

“Oops,” she said, not really sounding apologetic before she laughed. Something about that laugh always scared Hiro. That was not some normal type of laugh, it always reminded Hiro about one of those evil mad scientist laugh when something went their way.

 

“Honey,” Gogo started, her voice sounding tight and menacing.

 

“It really worked though!” Honey exclaimed happily as she removed her goggles. Her eyes were bright and filled with happiness. “It’s the latest invention to blind criminals. It usually just sticks to the outer part of the eyes and stays there.”

 

“Woah, what?” Wasabi asked, somehow sounding less than excited. “That’s scary!”

 

“Exactly!” Honey Lemon said as she looked around. “I’m still fixing the explosion radius though. But it worked nether the less.”

 

“Honey, you coloured half of the lab in light orange and you’re drenched in that stuff too,” Gogo commented, sounding slightly agitated.

 

“Oh, well, don’t worry,” Honey Lemon said before she went to her now orange coloured desk and took another ball filled with what seemed like light green liquid. “Watch this,” she said before she threw it against the wall and another loud bang filled the whole entire lab.

 

Hiro, who just happened to finally sit on the chair, had flung down on the floor again with that loud explosion. “This hurts!” Hiro exclaimed as he felt his back screaming in pain from hitting on the ground twice.

 

The light green that covered half of the lab somehow started to fade away, dragging away the orange colour and suddenly, everything in the lab was spotless as if nothing happened to it. Even Honey Lemon had looked sparkly. “It actually causes some kind of reaction together so that they evaporate into thin air simultaneously, leaving nothing but pure cleanliness.”

 

Wasabi had looked as if he didn’t know what to say meanwhile Gogo seemed mildly irritated. Hiro was groaning and mumbling darkly as he sat back down on his chair before the door to the lab flapped open widely, revealing Fred. “I heard some massive explosions in here,” Fred said casually, his eyes wide and a huge grin filling up his face.

 

“Yeah! Let me demonstrate again!” Honey Lemon said before she took another orange coloured ball.

 

Before any one of them could protest, she had threw that ball against the wall, causing another huge bang. This time, Hiro made sure he stayed on the ground.

 

That was the best decision in his life so far.

 

* * *

 

Rubbing his neck, he walked out of the lecture hall tiredly. After the third time blowing the lab up with colours, Hiro had decided to escape and head to his classes. He just didn’t expect some kind of audience outside of the lab, staring at him with worry and some with amusement. Wasabi was next to rush out in fear, scared that he would end up getting some of that orange thing into his eyes and going blind.

 

After that, the two of them tried to explain that what they heard was nothing dangerous. After trying to convince the said crowd that everyone was alright inside, Hiro had walked to his lecture hall, his back groaning at him.

 

He tried to focus during the class but he was somehow tired. The tiredness was making him lose concentration during class. So, he was glad when class finally ended and he ended up walking back to the café. Maybe he would ask Aunt Cass to make him some hot coffee or something. Shaking his head a bit, he jogged as he passed the busy streets and ended up at the familiar road pavement that brought him to the café.

 

Finally pushing open the café doors, he sighed loudly in happiness when he felt the familiar scenery greeted him back. “Aunt Cass? I’m back!” he yelled out as he heard some clattering from the kitchen. She quickly poked her head out from the kitchen and grinned widely.

 

“Welcome back, Hiro!” she said as he walked to one of the tables in the café and sat down with a slump, tired. “How was today?”

 

“Tiring,” he replied dryly as he heard his aunt chuckling. “Hey, Aunt Cass? Can I have some coffee?”

 

“Yeah, okay, let me make some,” Cass said back. Looking around, he noticed that some of the customers were busy eating and talking, enjoying Cass’s pastries. He smiled softly to himself before leaning against the chair and stretching a bit. After this coffee, maybe he would get a good hot bath to calm his tense muscles. Seconds ticked on before he looked around, placing his right arm on the table and his hand holding his chin. His eyes were slightly droopy as he stifled another yawn. “Here you go, Hiro.”

 

Cass placed the hot cup of coffee in front of him as he looked up to her and grinned. “Thanks, Aunt Cass,” he said before taking it and placing his lips around the white rim. Cass smiled back warmly before she walked back to the kitchen, continuing with her job. The hot coffee slightly scalded his tongue as he took it away from his lips, hissing in pain.

 

Great, another pain, he muttered darkly in his mind as he poked his tongue out of his mouth, trying to get it to cool down. Slowly pulling at his tongue with his fingers, he tried to pat the spot that got scalded by the hot coffee.

 

“Eww, what are you doing?” a voice asked as he looked down and noticed a young boy looking at him, his face scrunched up in disgust. Hiro shot an eyebrow upward before he let his tongue go and pulled his tongue in.

 

“I  _buwned_ my _tung_ ,” he said as he tried to pronounce the words without irritating his tongue. The boy just furrowed his eyebrows. “What do you want?” Hiro asked suddenly, finally managed to speak out properly without flinching at how numb his tongue was. The boy just blinked before shrugging and walking away to a table where his mother was.

 

Hiro followed the boy’s gaze before he sighed and shook his head, bringing the cup again to his lips. This time, he slowly sipped the coffee and felt the warm rich flavours bathing inside of his mouth in pure bliss. He felt a bit awake already.

 

Just then, the café doors opened, signalling another customer. Hiro sighed and decided that this place was getting a bit too crowded for him. Maybe he would just finish his coffee upstairs. As he got up and ready to walk around the table to go to his room, he was pushed slightly almost sending him flying to the ground with the coffee sploshing in his cup.

 

“Hey!” Hiro said before he straightened himself.

 

“Oh, sorry,” a voice apologised as Hiro turned around to face with the person who had pushed him. He looked at the person for a second before something in him clicked and he took a sharp step back. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to bump into you.”

 

_What?_

 

Hiro’s mind whirled around slowly as everything around him screeched to a stop. His eyes widened a fraction bigger at every passing second as his breath left his lungs. The silence suddenly zoomed between them as he stared at the man in front of him.

 

_What?_

 

The words echoed in his mind as the emptiness flooded throughout his body. His muscles twitched and his feelings jumbled up. Nothing was making sense right now. It was a whole bloody mash of green, black, yellow, orange, red and white inside and it was swirling. It didn’t make Hiro feel well.

 

_What?_

 

Dropping his cup of coffee with a loud crash on the ground, everything in the café went silent. Hiro just stared at him, his brown eyes searching into the other man’s. Something wasn’t right here. This was impossible. He wanted to wake up now. This wasn’t funny anymore!

 

Cass immediately poked out from the kitchen. “Hiro? I heard something crashing,” she said as she saw Hiro, looking transfixed staring at someone. Tears blurred slowly into his eyes and anger suddenly flashing into his mind.

 

_What is this cruel joke? This isn’t funny!_

 

“Are you alright?” the man asked, somehow worry flashing onto that familiar face. Cass furrowed her eyebrows before she walked towards Hiro in worry.

 

“Hiro?” she asked as she patted on his shoulder, startling Hiro out from his transfixion.

 

“Why—How—What?” Hiro asked, his voice trembling in confusion and frustration. The man just blinked, somehow guilt flashing over his face.

 

“I seriously didn’t mean for this to happen. I just bumped into him,” he said as Cass sighed and looked up to the person.

 

“It’s alright. Hiro’s just—.”

 

She stopped mid-sentence when she saw the man in front of them. It was the exact same look as Hiro was making. This was something that would cause anybody to stop and stare in horror and mortification. The man shuffled his weight from one foot to another, somehow feeling really awkward with the gazes. Scratching the back of his neck, he decided to just take a few steps back. “I’ll just…leave.”

 

“Wait!” Cass suddenly reacted as she grabbed onto his sleeve and tugged him. The man jerked in confusion and shock before looking at the woman. Blinking at her, Cass just stared at him. Her eyes were wide and pleading as her fingers dug into his sleeve cloth. “Please… _wait_.”

 

* * *

 

The man soon found himself sitting in front of Hiro and Cass. He had a cup of coffee in his hands as he sipped it slowly, looking around at anything and everything inside the café except at the both of them. He was really starting to feel uncomfortable, Hiro noted. The shock was still there, but it somehow subsided after a while staring at him. Something in Hiro realised that this wasn't what he thought it was. After Cass had asked him to stay behind, the man sat on one of the chairs and waited until Cass closed down the café so they could be alone.

 

Now, he was here, in front of them, waiting for whatever this was. Cass sighed as she tried to hold back her emotions. Hiro was trying his best not to get up and punch him in the face, just for the mere satisfaction of seeing that familiar face bleed. Mochi meowed slowly as it purred next to the man, somehow finding that this man was comfortable. Hiro narrowed his eyes at that damned cat. It was never that nice with him unless it was Aunt Cass or…or _Tadashi_.

 

Swallowing the familiar lump, he looked back at the man. “Tadashi.”

 

The man jerked away from his sight-seeing and looked back at Cass and Hiro. Placing down his cup, he blinked again in confusion. “Y-Yeah?”

 

Hiro’s eyes widened at that before Cass sighed, trying to avoid her emotions from showing on her face. “Y-Your name is Tadashi?” she asked, failing to keep the slight tremors from her voice. The man, who was named Tadashi, nodded before straightening himself.

 

“Y-yeah, I’m Tadashi,” he said, confirming it. “Tadashi…Takachiho.”

 

Hiro felt the lump slowly dissolve as he stared at the man who looked exactly like his deceased brother. The same hair, the same eyes, the same nose. Everything about him looked exactly like his Tadashi. Except for his last name. He squeezed onto the cap in his hand, the cap that he had to take off from his head, feeling slightly cautious about using his brother’s belonging all of a sudden.

 

“Oh,” Cass said somehow accompanying it with a slight laugh that sounded a little too broken. Silence brewed in for a minute before she continued, “I thought—you just look so _alike_.”

 

“Alike?” the man asked, raising an eyebrow the way Tadashi used to. Hiro felt the nostalgic moments getting to him before he looked away, eyes blurry again. His voice was the same, maybe a bit deeper from before. But Hiro couldn’t be so sure. It had been two years since he had seen and heard him. He felt Cass holding onto his hand tight, gesturing him to hold it back.

 

“Yeah,” Cass said before she smiled. “You just—you look like my nephew. His name is Tadashi too.”

 

The man looked silently surprised before nodding awkwardly. “I see. Good looking as well then, I assume?” he said, joking slightly before Hiro snapped his eyes and looked at him. Somehow, he couldn’t help but to feel angry at those words. He sounded so much like him. He acted so much like him and this made it worse.

 

How could he act that way?

 

As much as his rational mind was screaming at him that this man wasn’t Tadashi, his irrational part of his mind was being too dominant at the moment.

 

“He’s _dead_ ,” Hiro hissed out as the man found his threatening smile dropping. Cass sighed before she looked at Hiro pointedly.

 

“I-I’m sorry,” he said. “Maybe I should leave. I won’t come back, I’m sorry,” he said slowly only for Cass to shake her head.

 

“No, it’s alright,” she said slowly. “We just miss him. Today’s his death anniversary.”

 

Hiro looked down and sighed gently to himself. This day was so bizarre and strange for him. “I’m sorry,” the man continued to apologise, somehow his eyes scanning over to Hiro, who was hunching in his seat defeated. “ _I’m sorry_.”

 

Hiro’s eyes widened as he looked at Tadashi— _that Tadashi_ in the eyes. Somehow, the apology stroke deep inside of him, as if the man was really apologising from deep inside of his heart. Hiro searched into his eyes, but all he got was the blank look. Nothing in those eyes showed any signs that he recognised Hiro or Cass. It was blank, like a white canvas.

 

“This is Hiro Hamada. Tadashi Hamada was his older brother. And I'm their aunt, Cass.”

 

Hiro felt the tears brimming around his eyes before he got up slowly. “I—I have things to do. It’s nice meeting you. Good night, Aunt Cass,” he said quickly, avoiding Tadashi’s eyes before he walked past them. He felt the man’s lingering eyes on him but he ignored it assuming it was his own longing and climbed up the stairs before he entered his room. Walking to his bed, he slammed face first into his pillow.

 

It swept him from inside as he pushed his face into the pillow and tried to take deep gulps of air. This wasn’t his brother. That man was just someone who looked and acted like him. He wasn’t _Tadashi Hamada._

 

He closed his eyes shut as he willed the tense emotions to go away. He could do this. Tadashi wasn’t coming back, he reminded himself. He saw Tadashi going into the fire. He saw him dying—somehow. Even though they found nothing but ash, he was sure it was Tadashi’s.

 

 _He was dead_.

 

And this man, no matter how similar he looked or how close his name resembled, it _wasn’t_ Tadashi.

 

Hiro probably wouldn’t even have to see him anymore. So, he tried to forget it. That night, he spent hogging onto his work, dragging Baymax into the garage to get him checked and upgraded. He asked Baymax to replay back the footage when Baymax was being created. Even though it was slightly distorted because of the damage the chip received during the retrieval, he could still make out Tadashi’s grin and joy when he found out Baymax worked.

 

Hiro felt himself smiling as he watched the video a few more times, his fingers grazing slightly on Tadashi’s face. The man, he looked exactly like him but he could never be this Tadashi.

 

Hiro was sure of that at least.

 

The night coloured deeper and somehow, Hiro found himself dozing off in the middle of his work. His eyes began to tire and before he knew it, he was sleeping again, head leaned against the desk, leaving Baymax to stare at him with a tilt of his head.

 

“Hiro? Should I stop the video?” Baymax asked but Hiro didn’t respond, already lulling into a deep sleep listening to his brother’s voice in repeat. Baymax assumed the high levels of calmness Hiro was experiencing was because of that and let the video on for the rest of the night, watching Hiro sleep since he was not told to be deactivated.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, what do you guys think? Hiro's sixteen and suddenly Tadashi's back...kinda. Maybe. Who knowwwss~~ So, anyways, do comment to let me know if you guys want me to continue this. I don't know if Gogo and Wasabi or Fred are OOC since I watched the movie once, but I did do research on them, so I hope it paid off. Somehow. Anyways, again, do comment to let me know if you want to continue or not! Oh and please no hate-hate stuff? Eh, I did tick [M/M] already so, yah. See ya soon, tata~ -Krystal
> 
> Basic CSS provided by museaway


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Eh...not mine~

 

The sun dawned in as the light orange pallet basked the scenery. The city of San Fransokyo began to start off its day with the palling of street lights, welcoming the natural lightning. People started to walk out of their houses, some carried briefcases to work, some with their jogging attire meanwhile a fraction of them were heading away to their respective schools and universities. The light sunray beamed through the garage, colouring everything inside so that the darkness evaporated. Before long, the pale yellow orange-ish sunlit rays had reached and covered every inch of the garage.

 

The soft stabbing sensation from the light rays poked on Hiro’s face, eliciting some groans. He scrunched his nose up for a second before he sighed, the sun rays starting to get a bit sharp for his taste. His mind which was groggy started to clear up and he could practically feel the gears in his brain starting to move. Hiro felt a sharp jolt of pain from the back of his neck causing him to hiss out. That certainly had woken him up, he noted begrudgingly as he opened his eyes.

 

Feeling slightly worn out even though he was sure he had slept, Hiro looked straight ahead, realising that there was a huge shade of white blocking his view. His eyes slowly darted upwards before he saw Baymax, looking stiff and unmoving. Hiro blinked for a few times before a yawn threatened through his lips, unable to contain it inside. Opening his mouth wide and closing it after, he sighed and looked at where he was at the moment.

 

 _In the garage_ , he said to himself inwardly before he felt his right cheek going numb. Slowly raising his face from the cold and stiff desk, he cringed at the painful jolts coursing through the back of his neck down until his lower back. His face felt as if someone had placed ten three-hundred page dictionaries on it and left them there overnight. Groaning slightly, he tried to move his arms next, flinching at the feeling that they had gone half-way numb and stiff at the same time.

 

It wasn’t a pleasant feeling at all.

 

Slowly moving his head to the right and to the left, he felt the slight cracks and popping noises from around his neck and arms. He mentally shuddered at the noises but couldn’t help but to sigh in contempt when he felt the relief washing over his aching bones and muscles. Slowly massaging his right cheek, he let his eyes linger on the messy desk before looking up to his computer, which was turned on the whole night.

 

Huh, he was in the middle of upgrading Baymax before he fell asleep.

 

Quickly hitting the off button on his computer, he turned his body slightly to look at the said nurse bot.  “Baymax?” he questioned only for him to take a closer look at the machine when it didn’t respond. Just then, he saw the small flashing battery sign and mentally slapped himself for this carelessness. Baymax had run out of battery because he forgot to deactivate him. Now, he had to drag this big massive white inflated balloon all the way up to his room so Baymax could be recharged.

 

Cursing himself for his stupidity, he tried standing up from his now not-so-comfy chair and felt the bones in his knees popping. Once again, he relished at the feeling of relief washing over him before stretching his arms upwards into the air, trying to get some of the muscles to start moving. After that little stretch, he looked back at Baymax.

 

“Ugh,” he groaned again, realising that he had to drag this nurse bot all by himself up the stairs. “ _Not_ _again_.”

 

Walking a few inches towards Baymax, he quickly placed one hand on the bot’s arm and another around its big body, dragging it as he took a few steps back. It was going to be an insufferable ride, he noted bitterly in his mind.

 

* * *

 

Finally, he had managed to drag the bot into his room and shoved him into the red box that was against the wall. It took Baymax a few minutes before he rebooted to life and greeted Hiro. Hiro just smiled before deciding that he had let Baymax activated long enough.

 

“I’m satisfied with your care,” Hiro said as Baymax immediately deflated into his original white mass of goo. Smiling slightly at the scene, Hiro looked away from Baymax and around his room. Slowly massaging the back of his neck with his right hand, he decided that he should just take a nice long hot bath before starting his day. As he took out his new spare of clothes and a towel, the event from yesterday clouded his mind.

 

A man who looked exactly like Tadashi had come into his life.

 

It took him by surprise and for a moment, he thought that it was the real him. But after a while, after noticing that the man didn’t recognise Hiro or Aunt Cass, it dawned inside of him that this wasn’t Tadashi. Shaking his head slightly, he realised that no matter how much he had wished for something, it doesn’t necessarily mean it would happen.

 

Especially bringing someone back from the dead, Hiro snorted in his head before he swung the towel over his shoulder and wandered off to the bathroom. The hot water really did clear up most of his confusion and illogical thoughts, not to mention it soothed his aching muscles. Sighing in content for the umpteenth time of the day, he let his mind wander around for a bit.

 

He had things to do today, he noted. He had to finish up assignments and not to mention kick Fred’s ass in the latest video game everybody was buzzing about. Silently, his mind crept back to the days where he would participate in illegal bot fighting.

 

Well, betting was illegal, not the bot fighting itself, Hiro corrected before he smiled warmly remembering what his brother’s response would be. Tadashi would just shake his head before sighing out loudly, sending Hiro the most irritated looks in all history. But even to the very end, Tadashi remained like a real best friend to Hiro. Touching his chest, he felt the familiar emptiness washing into him again.

 

It was white, a huge streak of whiteness colouring every part of him. The memories where Tadashi lived was slowly turning black, as if he would wake up one day to find that he could no longer remember how Tadashi had looked like, or sounded like. When the day comes, Hiro would do anything to seek out something so he could remember his older brother again.

 

Shaking his head gently, Hiro decided that he had long enough soaked in the water and before his skin got prune-like and yucky, he better get out.

 

* * *

 

Once dressed out with his casual red T-shirt and his old worn out blue jeans, he grabbed his bag and looked around his room one last time. Jogging down the stairs, his stomach rumbled for some food. “Good morning, Aunt Cass,” Hiro greeted with a grin as he sat on one of the chairs near their dining table, waiting for his breakfast. Cass brought up some waffles soaked in honey and chocolate syrup and placed one plate in front of him with a cup of hot coffee.

 

“Good morning, Hiro,” Cass greeted back before she sat next to Hiro. Hiro didn’t know what happened after he had left yesterday, leaving Cass with the Tadashi look alike. And suddenly, curiosity seeped in as he took his first bite from his sweet and slightly tangy waffles. As he munched, he looked at his aunt, trying to deduce if she was alright after yesterday. However, his aunt seemed nothing out of the usual, just smiling as she took her bite from the waffles and glanced at Hiro. “What?” she asked as she swallowed her waffles.

 

Hiro looked away from Cass before looking at his waffles and took another bite. “Well,” he said with his mouth full before noticing Cass giving him a pointed look. Rolling his eyes, he quickly munched his waffle and swallowed it before speaking. “What happened…you know, yesterday?” Hiro asked, twirling his fork around as he avoided Cass’s eyes.

 

Cass remained quiet before she sighed, the heavy silence engulfed them for a moment or two before she said, “Nothing much.” Hiro looked back at her, searching her face before Cass looked at him and smiled warmly. “He’s really nice, Hiro. He—He might look like Tadashi but…I don’t know. It just felt great for a moment to talk to him.”

 

“Really?” Hiro asked absent-mindedly as Cass nodded.

 

“Not an exact copy,” Cass said slowly, her voice shimmering below her normal octave. “But almost the same, like the same Tadashi but not identical.”

 

Hiro quickly took another bite of his waffles, trying to register this information in his head. “He won’t be coming around, right?” he asked, somehow hoping that he wouldn’t. This would just make things harder. He didn’t want to get attached to someone who looked like his older brother, only to be disappointed by the end of the day.

 

Only to be left alone all over again.

 

“I don’t know about that,” Cass said before she sighed loudly and took her cup of coffee to sip on it. “Maybe he will, maybe he won’t. We did scare him a bit yesterday,” she said as she pointedly looked at Hiro. Hiro scratched at the back of his neck sheepishly before he finished up his waffles and took three big gulps of the coffee before he got up.

 

“Well, gotta run,” Hiro said as he grabbed his bag and kissing Cass’s cheek. “See ya, Aunt Cass.”

 

“See you soon, Hiro,” Cass greeted back with a small chuckle as she watched her nephew walking away.

 

* * *

 

SFIT, if anything, it was as lively as ever as Hiro walked into the institute, this time clearly not panting like someone with an asthma attack or feeling like some wet dog. He was glad that he had gotten to take a bus instead. Bouncing slightly in his steps, he took his time to walk to his lab.

 

They had separate labs even though they all shared one occasionally. The ‘nerd lab’ was where inventions were tested out. If it was something private, then they would locate back to their old singular labs and work there. Hiro had tried his hands on something lately and he really wanted to get back to it now. Walking into what was once Tadashi’s old lab, he sighed and started his way to the desk. He had requested this lab, wanting to be closer to Tadashi at some point, whether it was through his stuff or the place where he worked.

 

Besides, most of Tadashi’s inventions were quite good and some that haven’t gotten a chance to touch the first step into this world were really good inventions. Hiro decided that he would just spend his time slowly trying to get most of his brother’s work out there.

 

Tadashi needed that at the very least.

 

Looking around, he sighed when he saw huge clumps of mess almost everywhere. He had completely forgotten to clean up his lab. Groaning slightly, he walked up to his chair and chucked his bag on it before looking around. “Fine,” he said defeated before he picked up the scrap metals and tossed them aside so he could use them later.

 

“Woah, messy,” Wasabi said as he walked into the lab, looking at Hiro with wide eyes. Hiro looked up and greeted him with a grin.

 

“Hi, Hiro!” Honey Lemon was next as she wore her lab coat on. Looked like she had been here for a while now.

 

“Hey, guys,” Hiro said as he straightened himself. “Wanna help me out?” he asked sheepishly.

 

“No, thanks. That’s your mess,” Gogo walked in, popping her chewing gum as she raised an eyebrow at Hiro. The young Hamada sighed exasperated as he rolled her eyes at her and went to pick up another piece of the scrap metal and uninterestedly throwing it aside, causing huge clanks to vibrate throughout the room.

 

“What good friends you guys all are,” Hiro muttered loudly as he continued to lazily throw the metal scraps aside.

 

“Fredzilla’s in the house,” Fred barged in, wearing his usual lizard costume. “Woah, messy, man,” Fred said absent-mindedly as he looked around Hiro’s lab. Hiro just groaned loudly before he pointed at his friends with the metal scrap in his hands.

 

“Help me or get out,” Hiro threatened only for Honey Lemon to coo at him.

 

“Aww, don’t be like that Hiro,” she said as she walked up to him and literally bounced as she took her steps. “Let me help! I have this new invention that should help.”

 

“Is it going to explode in multi-coloured rainbows and making us go half-deaf along the way?” Hiro asked dryly as Honey Lemon rolled her eyes.

 

“Well…they do explode,” Honey said sheepishly a bit.

 

“No, thanks,” Gogo cut her off before she could do anything and looked at Hiro. “Fine, we’ll help.” She smiled a bit at him before Hiro broke into a grin and nodded.

 

“As long as there are no more exploding eye-blinding colours, I’ll help,” Wasabi said.

 

They cleaned up, most of it. The metal scraps were placed in one pile meanwhile all the electronics were placed into their respective compartments. Hiro’s desk was no longer looking like some dump zone, instead, it looked neat and clean and—

 

“I feel like messing it up again,” Hiro said as Gogo smacked the back of his head.

 

“Do it and this will be our last time helping you,” Gogo said casually even though there was an undertone of threatening in them. Hiro just chuckled before he rubbed the back of his head to soothe the dull pain.

 

“Just kidding,” he said as Wasabi rolled his eyes.

 

* * *

 

There weren’t any classes for Hiro today, so after he had finished cleaning up the lab with his friends, he decided to walk around the institute. Well, he didn’t want to because all he wanted to do was just sit in his lab and work on more prototypes but after four hours straight, Gogo had barged into the lab and dragged him out by the collar, saying something about getting some fresh air once in a while.

 

They had gone to grab something to eat before Hiro had left them and decided to head back to his lab. As he walked, he noticed how light blue the sky was and the breeze swept his messy hair felt really good on his exposed skin. It actually made him wanted to sit out for once. As he inhaled the fresh air, he decided to laze around for a minute or so before heading back to his lab. He wasn’t an outdoor person but once in a while, it was nice to stay outside.

 

He thought for a while as he looked up to the sky again. Maybe tonight, he would do something mischievous again. It had been so long since he had gone bot fighting and his old buddy was at home, lying on the desk looking at him with that stupid smile on its face. He would try not to get caught this time but the odds were still high. If he could get caught so easily when he was fourteen, what made him think that he could escape this now?

 

Oh yeah, because he was sixteen now.

 

Smiling to himself, he didn’t realise that he had walked off further away from the institute entrance and had ended up around the campus site. Looking around, he noticed how so many students laughing and sitting on the green grass enjoying their time. He noticed some were eating and studying as Hiro rolled his eyes at them. “Nerds,” he muttered as he chuckled to himself. He was a nerd too.

 

Taking another step, he was so preoccupied looking around him that he had failed to notice someone was walking towards him. Bumping straight into the person, both of them fell away from each other and landed on the floor with a painful thud. “Ouch,” Hiro mumbled harshly as he tried to sit up slowly, noticing how his butt was thundering in pain. “Why am I getting bumped into nowadays?” he asked to himself in irritation.

 

“Oh, sorry,” he heard someone apologising before he looked at the person. His whole body froze a moment before his eyes glazed on the person’s eyes. He felt the familiar anger washing into him before he sighed. This wasn’t happening, not today.

 

_Not again!_

 

“Oh…, it’s you,” the person said slowly. “I’m sorry, I didn’t see you there. Again.”

 

“I’m not that short, you know,” Hiro bit out as he glared at him. He noticed how those familiar brown eyes dyed in guilt for a moment before he saw the grin on his face. Rolling his eyes, he looked away. He had thought for sure that he wouldn’t have to meet with him again. He wasn’t ready to participate in whatever the world wanted to toss at him. He was too tired from crying and mourning for two years. He wasn’t ready to get back on his feet and hang around everyone who looked like his bloody dead brother!

 

“I’m sorry though,” the Tadashi look alike spoke slowly as sincerity rung out from his voice. “I was busy reading and walking…yeah, not the brightest move.”

 

Hiro grunted before he slowly stood up and patted himself off. Looking down at the man for a moment, he sighed and handed out his hand. Even though he didn’t want to see him, he wasn’t rude enough to leave him on the floor and walk away. The man looked at the hand for a moment before he grabbed it and Hiro pulled him up until he was standing. “Thanks,” the man said as Hiro pulled his hand away from his grasp and nodded. Looking on the ground he noticed two books lying on the ground.

 

Bending down, he picked them up and looked at the cover. “Biomedical Engineering?” he asked as he looked carefully at the cover and looked back at the man in the eyes. Tadashi grinned sheepishly a bit before he took the books away from Hiro’s grasp.

 

“Uh yeah,” he said as he chuckled slightly. “I just transferred here.”

 

Hiro raised an eyebrow before he looked back at the books which were now at the man’s possession. Biomedical Engineering, Hiro mused in his mind. Hiro remembered slightly that his brother, when he was still alive, had wanted to do something like that but because he was also interested in robotics, he took that up. Baymax was the product of his love for medicine and robotics.

 

To think that this look alike was now taking Biomed, it churned something inside of Hiro. He felt the same dull pain aching inside of his chest and he refrained himself from touching his chest. Quickly shaking those thoughts away, he sighed. “Yeah, I gotta go now,” Hiro said absent-mindedly and tried to walk around Tadashi to get back to his side of the institute.

 

“Hey, wait,” Tadashi called out as Hiro continued to walk away, his good mood somehow dampened a bit. “Hiro.”

 

Hiro stopped. He stopped dead on his tracks as he felt everything inside of him slowing down. The way he was called out, it reminded him too much of Tadashi. He felt his eyes water again as he took in a shaky breath. This couldn’t be happening. He didn’t want to do this. Trying his best to wield away the depressing thoughts, he felt an arm on his shoulder. Jerking away, he quickly turned around and pushed the man’s hand away. “Don’t touch me,” Hiro said sharply, causing the man to take a step back in caution.

 

Something in those brown eyes, Hiro thought he saw a flash of hurt. But before he could analyse it, it disappeared just as fast as it had appeared. “Sorry,” Tadashi apologised as he dropped his hand. Hiro almost felt guilty at that— _almost_.

 

“What?” Hiro asked as he looked at him in the eyes again, feeling a bit off. “I have things to do so…”

 

“Nothing,” Tadashi said, his voice dropping a bit. “I just…wanted to apologise.”

 

Hiro raised an eyebrow at him, confusion slowly mixing in his face as he stared at the man in front of him. “What for?”

 

Tadashi shrugged. “I just—I feel bad making you remember something like this. I remind you of your brother, don’t I?”

 

The younger Hamada was taken aback with the declaration as his eyes widened a fraction bigger. He looked at Tadashi, searching for something but after a while, all he noticed was the sign of remorse on that man’s face. Hiro just sighed before he shook his head slowly, realising that he had been directing his hatred at someone who clearly didn’t know anything about this. “No, I—I’m supposed to say sorry. You look exactly like him and I just…I forgot you’re not him,” Hiro said slowly before he closed his mouth, not sure to why he was telling this Tadashi about all of this.

 

Silence remained in between them before Tadashi nodded. Hiro looked at him slowly and that’s when he noticed how his hair was a bit longer and messier than what his brother, Tadashi’s hair would be. It made him look a bit matured, a bit stronger and a bit more— _him_. “I—…,” Tadashi started out but something in him had him quiet down. Hiro raised an eyebrow at the hesitation.

 

“What?” Hiro asked, something in him wanted to tease that fluttered and that slightly frightened expression on Tadashi’s face.

 

Tadashi then looked at him in the eyes before he took in a deep breath and smiled. “It might be weird to you but, if you would like,” he said slowly. “I can be your friend.”

 

Hiro’s eyes widened as he took a step back, once again surprised at this man’s straight forwardness. Something inside of him fuelled and he felt everything inside starting to sprout out. It was the same feeling he had before Tadashi died. “What?” Hiro asked, merely above a whisper. Tadashi furrowed his eyebrows a bit before he ran his fingers through his hair, looking as if he had witnessed someone kick a puppy.

 

“I guess that’ll be weird,” he said slowly as Hiro looked at his face. He searched at the man’s face for anything that resembled as a joke, but when he saw the slight flash of hurt once again in the man’s eyes, he quickly shook his head.

 

“What are you saying?” Hiro asked, causing Tadashi to look at him. “You—you want to be my friend? When you know you look exactly like my dead brother?”

 

Tadashi bit his bottom lip before he sighed. “I just—”

 

“If this is out of pity, I don’t need it,” Hiro hissed out. “I don’t need you to feel responsible just because you look exactly like my Tadashi. I don’t need a replacement. There’s nobody who can be like Tadashi Hamada.”

 

“Hey, hey,” Tadashi suddenly said as he reached out to touch Hiro’s shoulder. “I didn’t—”

 

“Stay away from me,” Hiro said before he took a few steps back and started to run away from there. He couldn’t get the words out of his mind as he swished through the scene. He felt his emotions compromised from that simple request. Why had he flared up like that? Hiro couldn’t understand what was going on. He didn’t have to snap at him like that.

 

* * *

 

When he had reached home from the institute, he didn’t greet Cass, instead he quickly walked up to his room and sighed as he flopped back on the bed face first. His life was starting to make less sense. Looking up from the pillow, he turned on his back and stared at the ceiling. This heaviness inside of his heart, it somehow lightened to hear those words out from that man’s mouth, but the fury once again emerged when he thought that he only wanted to try and be friends with Hiro because he pitied him.

 

Because somehow, he felt sorry that he reminded Hiro of the older Hamada.

 

And because of that thought alone, it irked the younger Hamada from inside. He didn’t need any pity. He always hated when he heard people saying they were sorry for the loss. They didn’t know how they felt, how he and Aunt Cass had felt. He had heard that sentence since he was four. Since his parents had died. He hated that sentence and now, to hear it again after Tadashi’s passing, it irked Hiro from inside.

 

He loathed pity. He wasn’t that weak.

 

He was a Hamada. That was saying something about himself.

 

He didn’t need some lousy pity especially from his brother’s look alike.

 

Sighing softly, he realised that he couldn’t really be angry at him anyway. That hurt flashing in those familiar brown eyes, it swished something deep inside of Hiro. He didn’t mean to hurt him. He didn’t like to see someone hurting, it was enough that he was alone suffering. It was enough that he knew what it felt like to be in pain, physically and mentally. He doesn’t need for someone else to feel it, especially that man.

 

As much as he wasn’t Tadashi, he was somehow like him some ways.

 

That easily hurt look on his face and yet that good natured feeling that vibrated around him, it made Hiro wanted to hug him. To bury his face in his chest and just cry. Just to let his feelings erupt finally until he could no longer feel anything but pure numbness from having to cut himself open so every drop of sadness, insecurity and depression oozed out.

 

Looking away from the ceiling, he looked around his room before he spotted that bot. The fighting bot he had created when he was fourteen. Slowly sitting up, he let his gaze linger on that smiley face. Something in him itched again, to start heading back to bot fighting. But he was a member of Big Hero 6 now, he couldn’t let the illegal activities get to him.

 

But he missed the thrill and need to fight with his bot.

 

He _missed_ it.

 

Slowly planting his feet on the ground, he lifted himself up from the soft bed and walked to his desk, grabbing onto the bot. He wondered if he could still operate this thing. This might actually be what he must need for now. Some distraction. He couldn’t upgrade Baymax anymore since it was all done with, so for now, let the thrill get to him.

 

He could imagine Tadashi Hamada shaking his head at him, asking him to go back to the bed and sit down. “Well,” he said slowly. “It’s just for a while, Nii-san. Just one last time.”

 

He almost laughed at the irony of the situation. Shaking his head, he clutched onto the bot and looked around for his brother’s cap. Grabbing it, he quickly opened his secret drawer and found some rolls of money. He had kept this money here since he had stopped fighting. He only spent a fraction of it when he was upgrading Baymax before taking out Callaghan.

 

“A new angle,” he muttered at his brother’s catchphrase, suddenly remembering that that was the words that had saved the team from getting smashed into a pulp by Callaghan and finally defeated him. Pushing those thoughts out of his mind, he grabbed the money and took his favourite hoodie and shoved them in the pockets. Wearing it over his red shirt, he took the cap and wore it over his head.

 

With that, he clutched onto the fighting bot and rushed down the stairs. It was almost dinner time, he noted as he noticed the sky was getting darker. This was a perfect time for bot fighting match. Digging out his phone, he quickly connected his device to the wireless internet and searched for the nearest match. Grinning when he found a destination, he slowly sneaked past Cass’s kitchen to get to the main door.

 

“Hiro?” Cass’s voice rung out as Hiro cursed. “Where are you going?” she asked as Hiro slowly turned around and looked at her. “It’s almost dinner time.”

 

“I’m just going to meet with my friends for a while,” Hiro said as he placed the fighting bot behind of him. “I’ll be back soon.”

 

Before Cass could say anything else, he turned around and dashed out of the café, hugging onto the bot. As he ran down the pavement, he didn’t hesitate to take a sharp left when he bumped into someone, causing him to sprawl once again flat on the pavement, his bot on the ground next to him. Groaning in irritation, he sat up and sighed, rubbing his forehead. “What am I? Someone that attracts body bumping?” he growled out to himself.

 

“Hiro?” the familiar voice asked in question as Hiro snapped his eyes and looked ahead.

 

“Not again,” he said out loud as he stared at Tadashi, who was looking at him with confusion lingering in his eyes. “Why are you always the one I’m bumping into?” Hiro asked as he slowly stood up and patted himself, Tadashi doing the same.

 

“Where are you going?” he asked as Hiro looked at him and looked at the ground to find his bot. Quickly bending down to get it, he looked back at Tadashi.

 

“Nowhere that concerns you,” he said as he tried to move past Tadashi and walked away. He was going to be late for the match. Before Tadashi could say anything else, Hiro had taken into running and dashing around corners to get to his destination.

 

After one bus trip later, he had walked down the familiar darkened alley. He couldn’t stop the threatening smile on his lips as he recalled the last time he was down here. Walking slowly as he approached the end of the alley, he saw lights flickering at the end. He heard some light screaming and the slight roaring cheers, something that he hadn’t heard for a while now.

 

The dark musky smell covered every inch as he finally stepped into the dim light. “How about we start off our night with some bot fighting?” a voice asked as the crowd cheered. Hiro slowly manoeuvred through the crowd before he was at the front line.  A woman, cladded with light purple dress and her hair in bright pink tied in a ponytail grinned from ear to ear as she looked at the crowd. “Let’s start with two strangers! Who would like to step up here and present their bot?”

 

Hiro remained quiet as he watched at how some people whispered and looked at each other. Seconds ticked on before one man stepped out from the crowd. He looked big and scary, almost as if he had swallowed two whales. Hiro bit his bottom lip from laughing at that and held onto his tiny bot tightly.

 

“I’m Junko,” said the man, his voice rumbling deep. “And I want to play.”

 

“Good! Place your bets, young man,” she said with a lopsided grin.

 

 _Young man?_ Hiro asked in his mind as he stared at Junko. The man nodded and took out what seemed like two rolls of cash and placed in the middle. _Huh, he was that confident, I see_.

 

“Where’s your bot?” the host asked as the man grinned and took out what seemed like a small box and placed it on the ground, in the match circle.

 

“This is it,” he said, gaining some chuckles including from Hiro.

 

“What was that supposed to be?” Hiro muttered to himself, slightly humoured but mostly intrigued as well. Junko immediately straightened himself before he glazed around the crowd. Before he knew it, his fiery orange eyes landed on Hiro and they narrowed.

 

“What did you say, kid?” Junko asked as Hiro blinked at him.

 

“Huh, me?” Hiro asked as Junko frowned at him.

 

“You want to challenge me, boy?” he asked as Hiro rubbed the back of his neck nervously, somehow starting to dread that he ever said those words out loud. But neither the less, this was what he had come here for, didn’t he?

 

“Yeah, sure,” Hiro said as he shrugged, stepping out from the crowd and into the small invisible circle.

 

“Alright! Place your bets,” the girl said as Hiro dug out a few pieces of notes and placed it next to the two rolls of cash. Junko snorted at that as Hiro sighed. “Your bot please!”

 

Hiro nodded and placed the robot in front of him before he dug out for his controller. “ _This_ is your bot?” Junko mocked before he burst out laughing, followed by the rest of the crowd.

 

The young Hamada had wanted to throw the controller onto Junko’s head but decided against it. The next thing he needed was some bruise on his face after getting punched by a freaking humanoid whale. “Now, steady! We’re going to start this match in three, two, one!”

 

Just when the girl had said and stepped away, Junko had walked up to the small box and stepped on it, crunching it under his feet. Hiro just watched him carefully before Junko took a few steps back. “Watch and learn, kid.”

 

In just mere seconds after he stepped away, the crunched box started to vibrate and move into limbs and working parts. Hiro was fascinated as he saw how the box had glowed in light electronic blue before it assembled itself into what seemed like an electrical-impulse robot. Looking at Junko, he saw around his wrist was what seemed like a light blue band. With a click, the light blue band started to vibrate and hiss, covering his fingers in tiny treading of neon blue.

 

As the robot finally assembled, Hiro saw how it was connected to his hand. Junko clenched his fist and the robot in front of him clenched its hand. “Woah,” Hiro said fascinated only to get a mocking laughter from Junko.

 

“Your turn, _kid_ ,” he said as Hiro nodded before he took a few step back before pushing his bot forward with his feet.

 

Junko rolled his eyes before the game started when his robot took the first hit and smashed Hiro’s bot. Hiro blinked before he smirked, knowing what was going to happen next. “Now you watch and learn… _man_ ,” Hiro said before the crashed metal parts started to re-join and vibrate. Before the man could react, Hiro had taken liberty to identify the weak parts and chugged it down. “Electricity isn’t your best friend, my man,” Hiro said as the robot clogged the parts where electrical impulse was pounding through.

 

“What’s happening?” Junko yelled out as he tried to get his bot to work, only for him to find out that the electricity trapped within his robot was overloading.

 

“I would take a few steps back if I were you,” Hiro said as he did what he said to others. Before anyone could react, the electrical-impulse robot exploded, crackling and hissing on the ground. After a few seconds, the girl announced Hiro the winner. Hiro happily took the money and shoved it in his hoodie and looked at Junko. “Nice battling with ya.”

 

“Why you—,” Junko said it out loud, heading towards Hiro with eyes blazing with anger. Hiro’s eyes widened before he cursed out loud. He quickly grabbed his bot and shoved it into his hoodie’s jacket before he started to dodge out of the crowd to run away. “Get back here, you cheater!”

 

“It’s not cheating when it’s already illegal!” Hiro yelled back as he tried to lose the man who was chasing him to no end. Dashing around, he tried his best to find a way out to the open. Somehow, he couldn’t find it. This place was like a maze and because his adrenaline was kicking at high gear, he couldn’t seem to think straight to find a way out of here.

 

His heart hammered against his chest and his eyes widened when he felt a tug at his collar, pulling him to a corner darker than the alley. Before he could protest, someone had pushed him against the wall and placed a hand over his mouth. Hiro’s eyes searched at the person who was holding him captive before his eyes met the familiar warm brown ones.

 

“ _Wamajish_?” Hiro muffled out as the man looked at him and placed an index finger on his own lips, asking Hiro to be quiet. Hiro just stared at him in mock horror and confusion before he heard Junko panting outside of where they were hiding. After a few seconds, he heard the ugly man running off, leaving them behind. A few more seconds passed on just for good measures before the man sighed out in relief. Hiro just raised an eyebrow at him before he pushed his hand off. “Tadashi?”

 

“What were you doing?” Tadashi asked, somehow furrowing his eyebrow at him. Hiro just stared at him instead, confused beyond ever.

 

“How did you find me?” he asked as Tadashi rolled his eyes at him.

 

“I asked you a question first, Hamada,” Tadashi said, somehow his voice sounding cut out and tight. Hiro raised an eyebrow at him before he sighed and dug out from his hoodie pocket to show his bot.

 

“What did you think I was doing?” Hiro asked as Tadashi’s eyes darted to the fighting bot. Seconds of silence ticked on before he heard an exasperated sigh from the taller man. Hiro looked at him from the corner of his eyes to notice the same displeased look that his Tadashi used to make when he found out that the younger Hamada got into trouble. The twinge of familiarity took him by surprise as he shook his head. “Why were you here anyway?”

 

Tadashi looked at him for a while before he took a few steps back to give Hiro some space. “I followed you here.”

 

“And that’s because?” Hiro asked as he swished his hands around, asking him to elaborate.

 

“Well,” Tadashi said slowly as he rubbed the back of his neck. “I wanted to apologise about what I said today. I think I upset you. And then, I followed you out here when you seemed to be in a rush somewhere and you looked like you were in trouble.”

 

“I looked like I was in trouble?” Hiro asked in disbelief. “You just met me! You can’t categorise how I look as trouble!”

 

Tadashi just looked at him pointedly as Hiro felt the sharp thud against his chest again at the familiarity. This wasn’t good. Hiro was somehow getting his hopes up for some reason for this Tadashi. “Anyways, bot fighting? You know it’s illegal, right?”

 

“Betting is,” Hiro said automatically as if he had rehearsed that a multiple times and rolled his eyes. “I’m just going to go home now.” With that, he walked past Tadashi and finally found his way out to the open. He knew that his brother’s look alike was following him but he didn’t make any effort to talk to him after that. Somehow that banter back there reminded him of how they used to be. How Hiro Hamada and Tadashi Hamada bantered about and it settled a dull aching pain inside.

 

Touching his chest absent-mindedly, he continued his walk for a while before he turned around. Tadashi stopped dead in his tracks as he looked up at the younger Hamada with one of his eyebrows raised upwards. “Why are you following me?” Hiro asked as Tadashi sighed and ran his fingers through his hair.

 

“I haven’t apologised to you yet for today,” Tadashi said. “And, you didn’t let me explain.”

 

“Explain?” Hiro asked as Tadashi nodded.

 

“Hiro,” he said softly as Hiro almost cringed at the same fondness. Fondness, it felt weird after all this time. “I don’t pity you. I’m not asking to be friends out of pity. I don’t do anything that selfish.”

 

“Then why did you suggest that?” Hiro asked.

 

Tadashi just shrugged a bit before he smiled. His smile somehow was a bit vibrant under the streetlights, causing Hiro to take a step backward at the suddenness. “You’re an interesting kid.”

 

Hiro just chuckled a bit before he rolled his eyes at the man. “I’m not a kid. I’m sixteen. And that’s hardly any reason to become friends with me,” Hiro said softly before his eyes left the man’s face. “I—you remind me too much of him.”

 

“I can’t keep on apologising every time I do remind you of him,” Tadashi said, catching Hiro off guard. “But it would be good, wouldn’t it, to try and get over him by being with someone familiar with him?”

 

Hiro remained silent before he looked at Tadashi in the eyes again. “You want to be my friend?”

 

Tadashi just remained quiet before he shuffled his feet. “Only if you want to. Your Aunt Cass makes killer pies though, so I would be pretty bumped out if I couldn’t be friends with you.”

 

“And there comes out the truth,” Hiro said dramatically before he chuckled. Tadashi just gave him a grin before the silence enveloped between them.

 

“Fine,” Hiro said slowly as Tadashi looked at him. “Fine, I’ll be your friend just—don’t tell Aunt Cass I was here.”

 

Tadashi just smirked at that before he rolled his eyes and walked forward to the younger Hamada. “What makes you think I will just agree to that?” Hiro just stared at him for a while before he cracked a smile. “Let’s go back. Your aunt must be worried.”

 

“Nah, I told her I was with friends,” Hiro said as he waved his hand dismissively but followed the man anyway. As they walked in silence, Hiro couldn’t help but to glance at the taller man once in a while, noticing how so alike he was to Tadashi. Something in him cringed in pleasure when he realised that he would be friends with him.

 

But something else also dreaded a bit inside.

 

Was this really a right thing to do?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So...how was it? I'm kinda nervous with this chapter. -scratches neck- I tried though...Anyways, I hope you guys liked this chapter! I don't know about the spacing though, is the spacing too big? Also, thank you all for the kudos and comments, it made my day and made me a bit confident about continuing. However, do continue to support me and do comment at the end of this chapter to let me know what you guys thought~ See you soon! -Krystal


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dark days when I’m feeling the doubt, bring me back, you’re the light of my life – Tove Lo (Paradise)
> 
> Disclaimer: Not mine~

 

Hiro sighed as he looked around his room. He really didn’t want to do this but Cass could be scary when she needed to. The younger Hamada was now looking at his messy bedroom, clothes piling near the bed legs and his papers were all spread on his desk, looking like some freaking Mount Everest trying to pop out from under his desk. Not to mention, the floor he was standing on was clearly dusty and he could see that under his white sparkling socks, a darker blotch was covering on the sole of his feet.

 

Seriously, how did he always end up in a messy place like this?

 

Shaking his head to push away the thoughts, he decided that the best place to start would be his desk. Walking up to it, he took a few papers and shuffled them together. After that, he placed them aside, smiling to self when he saw a neat stack. He continued on a few more seconds, before he looked back at his desk only for him to gag at how many papers were still left on his desk. Now, some of the papers had slipped past the desk and onto the floor, covering the floor around his chair with white mass.

 

Groaning to himself, he looked around and decided that he wasn’t going to finish this up alone. Sometimes, he regretted leaving his room unattended for days and days to no end, but laziness for cleanliness would always get to him somehow. He was teenager at that, nobody should be asking him to clean up his room. But then again, if nobody did, he was sure his room would now be some kind of rat nest, invested with colonies of them ready to pounce at him the minute he started to clean things up.

 

Shuddering at that thought, his eyes darted away from the chaotic mess to the small red box against the wall. He pondered for a while if this was the right thing to do before he shrugged it off. _Baymax doesn’t do much here anyway_ , Hiro muttered in his mind before he walked up to the red box and stood in front of it.

 

“Ouch,” Hiro said, allowing the nurse bot to quickly inflate with a silent hiss before it stood in front of Hiro, almost at the same height, looking round and cuddly.

 

“I heard—”

 

“Baymax, I need help,” Hiro cut the normal introduction before he looked around his room. However, that didn’t stop Baymax from scanning him once again and deducing a diagnosis. Hiro silently waited for Baymax to finish as he looked around his room. How Tadashi used to keep his side clean, he would forever wonder that out loud.

 

Speaking of Tadashi, Hiro remembered what had happened yesterday. After the rescue from Junko, the humanoid walrus, whale and human all rolled into one species, Tadashi— _that_ Tadashi had explained his reasons to why he suggested being friends with Hiro. It wasn’t the best reason Hiro had ever heard.

 

‘ _You’re an interesting kid_.’

 

It was definitely not the best reason to become friends with this young genius, but that sentence had some sense of familiarity in it that Hiro couldn’t help but to accept. Tadashi didn’t chatter much after that, in fact, they hadn’t said another word as Tadashi walked Hiro back to the café. Hiro was sure that this man would let Cass know that he had gone bot fighting but he was mildly surprised when he _lied_ to Cass about where he was.

 

That somehow proved to Hiro that this _wasn’t_ his Tadashi.

 

No, his Tadashi was like a saint. He couldn’t lie even if his life depended on it.

 

Maybe, Hiro wasn’t sure. Wait—Tadashi did lie. Hiro remembered the memory where Tadashi had tricked him into bringing to the SFIT at night instead to one of the bot fighting matches. But somehow, that didn’t sound like a lie to Hiro. Tadashi was a good manipulator, but he couldn’t lie.

 

Cass was surprised at first because she was sure that Hiro would stay away from the Tadashi-alike. But when Hiro was grinning widely as if someone had poured a pot full of sunshine on him, she silently looked back at Tadashi and smiled warmly at him. Tadashi was invited for dinner and Hiro couldn’t help but to keep that grin on his face the entire time they ate dinner.

 

That soft pain that ached inside all this time since two years ago, somehow dulled and disappeared yesterday night. It was as if Hiro had never lost anyone dear to him. Cass was smiling too, somehow enjoying Tadashi’s company. It was as if the whole family was complete. Even Mochi, the stupid cat, as Hiro had so fondly called it frequently, would meow and cuddle around Tadashi as if it had known him all its life.

 

“Calling loved ones—”

 

“Woah, what? No!” Hiro exclaimed, quickly coming out from his daydream when he saw Baymax’s screen indicating that he was calling his friends.

 

“But Hiro, you are showing frustration and discomfort,” Baymax said as he tilted his head slightly to the left, looking at Hiro with those beady and yet cute eyes. Hiro chuckled before he rolled his eyes at Baymax.

 

“I’m not frustrated,” Hiro said as Baymax continued to stare at him. Sighing, he continued, “Not _that_ frustrated. Just this room is so messy and I can’t really clean this up all by myself. So, I want you to help.”

 

“Will this help you decrease your frustrations?” Baymax asked as Hiro nodded.

 

“Yeah,” Hiro said as he pulled out his grin. Baymax nodded before he stepped out of the red box and trotted past Hiro to the bed. “Okay, so just— _what_ are you _doing_?” Hiro asked as he looked at Baymax.

 

Baymax on the other hand had taken the liberty to grab the edge of the mattress of Hiro’s bed and pulled it up. Baymax looked at Hiro, somehow looking innocent as he said, “I’m helping you to clean up.”

 

Hiro just blinked before he sighed and rolled his eyes at that nurse bot. “Not like that, dummy. I asked you to clean up, not get rid of my mattress.”

 

“But Hiro, this mattress has more than two hundred germs on it and listing out, they are—”

 

“Yeah, put that down, Baymax,” Hiro said as Baymax did what he was told, his bed frame jumping and shaking slightly at the harsh thud. He certainly didn’t want to hear what type of germs had manifested itself in his mattress. “Just, you see my desk there? Lots of paper and I tried to stack them but at the end, it still looks like some kind of mountain escapade. So, just stack them in a neat pile, alright?”

 

Baymax quickly trotted away from the edge of the bed to the desk, staring at it slightly. A few seconds had passed as Baymax stared at it, his hands moving outwards before he clasped his fingers. “It seems that I cannot perform my task because of the limited knowledge on ‘how to stack papers’.” Hiro wanted to take off his sock and shove it into his own mouth, but he couldn’t blame Baymax. He knew every martial art there was in the history of martial arts and Baymax knew every named and unnamed diseases that could affect and kill human race. But that was all because he was programmed to do so.

 

Slowly, Hiro made way to the desk and sighed before grabbing some pieces of paper and shaking it slightly in front of Baymax. “Alright, so record this and keep it in your chip, alright? Get this programmed.”

 

“Starting to record,” Baymax said in agree before Hiro showed him how to shuffle papers together and putting them aside in a stack.

 

“See? That’s how you do it,” Hiro said as he pointed at the neat stack of papers. “Your turn.”

 

Baymax carefully took the papers between his big fingers and tried to stack them. After putting aside the first stack, he slowly looked at Hiro for approval. Hiro just smiled affectionately before he nodded. “There you go, buddy,” he said before he patted Baymax on the arm and walked over to his clothes. “Just keep doing that.”

 

With that said, Baymax had gone over and started on stacking. Meanwhile, Hiro decided that some of his clothes needed laundry time and started to sort them out. It took them nearly three hours to clean his room before Hiro flopped on his bed exhausted meanwhile Baymax staring at Hiro. “That was exhausting,” Hiro said.

 

“If you’re happy with the results, please say ‘I’m satisfied with your care’ to deactivate me,” Baymax had said as Hiro chuckled.

 

“You did well, Baymax,” Hiro said before he looked at the big balloon bot. “I’m satisfied with your care.”

 

With that, Baymax had went to the red box and started to charge himself before deflating. Hiro looked around his now spotless room and patted himself on the shoulder. Who knew having a nurse bot could be so helpful at times? Before he could think any further, someone had called him.

 

“Hiro!” Cass’s voice vibrated through as Hiro answered with a quick ‘Yes?’ “Come and help me with the café, can you? I’m quite short-handed right now.”

 

Hiro quickly left his room and jogged down the stairs before he went to the café’s kitchen, noticing how Cass was having a hard time trying to get some coffee into cups and watching the buns in the oven from burning off. “Need help?” Hiro asked as Cass looked up and smiled.

 

“Yes, can you give these cups of coffee to table three?” she said as Hiro nodded and grabbed them. “Also, have you cleaned your room?”

 

“Yeah,” Hiro answered shortly before he quickly walked out of the kitchen and headed to table three. Placing the cup of coffee in front of them, he flashed them a grin before walking back to the kitchen. “You should hire more people especially on weekends, like today, to help you.”

 

“You know me, Hiro,” Cass said as she wore her oven gloves and opened the oven door for a second before she closed them. “I like to run this place with my family.”

 

“I’m hardly any help,” Hiro counter attacked as Cass chuckled.

 

“But you are now,” she said, giving him an affectionate glance. “Please check on the customers, Hiro.”

 

Hiro nodded at her before he turned around and walked out of the kitchen, heading out to the counter to check on the customers. As he sighed and leaned against the counter, he looked around the café. He couldn’t help but to smile when he saw how happy some of the customers were, eating or drinking something that Cass had made. It somehow sent a very short yet sharp thrill down his spine when he realised that those things that Cass made with her heart and soul, those pastries and drinks she made with all her love, would end up as someone else’s happy memento on their darkest days.

 

He didn’t go to SFIT today, it was Saturday after all and Hiro would usually spend it helping out Cass with her café. It was usually flooded during the weekends, especially during late afternoons. As he continued to lean against the counter, his eyes caught onto a boy, who was happily eating his butter bread as he took a secret sip from his mother’s coffee cup. He recognised the boy as he recalled that the boy had approached him when he was in the middle of an embarrassing tongue burned episode.

 

Just then, the door to the café chimed open and Hiro immediately looked ahead. His eyes widened a bit when he noticed it was Tadashi, walking in with his casual shirt and jeans. Even after yesterday, this was something new to him. He would feel the soft waves of nostalgia hitting him deep inside before depression would threaten to start. But then, after a few seconds, he would get used to Tadashi’s presence.

 

And that was only yesterday.

 

Today, the same process repeated in a flash, so he had assumed this would be his normal reaction whenever he saw this man. Somehow, something sharp, like fear would strike deep inside like some violin note gone awry. Like someone was playing the piano with a gentle tune only to suddenly miss a key and an awful screechy noise takes over. Suddenly, Hiro felt this feeling overpowering for a moment.

 

The fear was deeply tainted with black darkness. It tainted deep inside of him and he knew why he was scared.

 

He was scared that he would replace this man for his Tadashi.

 

He was scared that one day, when he wakes up, he wouldn’t realise that his real brother—the real Tadashi had died. This was just someone who looked and acted like him, taking over the real Tadashi from within.

 

Hiro was terrified that he would forget that this Tadashi wasn’t his Tadashi and he would pile up all his long lost hopes on him.

 

He was scared—that he would be alone again.

 

_Because, death was the only thing in life that was certain._

 

‘ _But it would be good, wouldn’t it, to try and get over him by being with someone familiar with him_?’

 

That Tadashi’s little speech definitely struck something in Hiro once again. He had to admit, he had a good point. The only way for him to get used of Tadashi being gone, was to somehow centre himself around things that reminded him—or in Hiro’s case, someone who reminded him of Tadashi. It would help to settle down all this bubbly darkness inside. At least, it would keep him away from heading towards another episode of solitude and deadly thoughts on how to get Tadashi back, or sometimes, shamefully he had to admit, how to join Tadashi in the afterlife.

 

 So for now, Hiro forced those heavy thoughts aside. They wouldn’t do him any good now either.

 

Tadashi’s eyes had met his from across the café before he walked towards him with a childish grin that caused Hiro to flinch slightly at the real accurate familiarity. That stretch around his lips, his teeth that were aligned perfectly and pearly white, it was all too familiar. Sighing internally, he realised that he was never going to get used to this after all.

 

“Hey,” Tadashi said as Hiro forced out a smile, hoping it didn’t seem bitter or grim.

 

“Hi,” Hiro said before he looked away from focusing on his dead brother’s look alike. It seemed like he would end up in flames and die if he kept on looking at him longer than necessary. Guilt would plunge itself deep inside whenever he thought about his agreement with Tadashi yesterday. He wanted to move away right now, just some space between them but before he could do it, Cass had walked out with a grin on her face when she spotted Tadashi.

 

“Tadashi,” Cass said as Tadashi looked away from Hiro to her, morphing down that grin into a smile, gentle and caring, as if he had known Cass all his life. Those wishful thinking clouded Hiro’s mind once again before he decided that he had enough of thinking and pushed them away. Maybe that was Hiro’s longing for things to be like how they were, so he didn’t ponder on that long. “Came to help?” she teased, somehow feeling easy with him even though in truth, she had confessed to Hiro that it was going to be hard to get used to him at first despite this being something good for them.

 

Tadashi looked away from Cass to observe the café before he let out some chuckles. “It seems so,” he said as he shrugged at her.

 

“Aunt Cass, I don’t think—” Hiro said as he tried to get this woman named Cass to stop terrorising every people she come across as some potential help even though she _refused_ to get real help for once.

 

“It’s alright, Hiro,” Tadashi said as he looked at his aunt and smiled again. “I’ll help.”

 

“Great, I spot more customers coming in,” Cass said as she looked at the door to see a family of three walking in. Hiro groaned under his breath silently as he walked away from his aunt and into the kitchen, Tadashi silently following even though Hiro knew that he had that amused smirk on his face. How he knew that? Somehow, Hiro didn’t know. This Tadashi was similar to his Tadashi that he sometimes could predict him.

 

“So, what do I do?” Tadashi asked as Hiro turned around and looked at the kitchen before Cass came in.

 

“I’ll handle the pastries and orders, you two can help with the aftermath and delivering,” she said as she hurriedly took out plates to serve the orders meanwhile Hiro volunteered to stay out from the kitchen. He didn’t want to stay in the same air space as Tadashi for now. He needed time and space to get used to him and for now, he needed that space. Tadashi was left with no choice but the dirty plates and the sink.

 

Hiro didn’t feel guilty.

 

Washing dishes was one of the worst things to do and Hiro hated it. He would likely try and worm his way out of that particular chore even if it would mean bribing his aunt with some movie tickets to a show she was dying to watch.

 

As Hiro served the customers and then took the plates out and into the kitchen, the atmosphere had settled into some kind of completion to it. Hiro was sure that something like a piece of the puzzle-clicking-into-place-like feeling had worked itself into this space. It was comfortable and it was warm. Hiro couldn’t deny the fact that he enjoyed this, since he hadn’t felt like this for almost two years.

 

The dull aching pain, the guilt, the fear, it all vanished soon after as if they were never there. As if Hiro hadn’t spent the last two years, _heck_ , the last _two days_ trying to keep the tears from running down from his eyes and making a mess on his face. It was really something that calmed him down from inside.

 

As if, as if Tadashi was _back_.

 

It took them three hours before the customers finally left, making way for the less busy time of the day. Soon, Cass’s café was deserted, and there were no more chattering people or noisy kids. Just an empty café, occasionally one or two customers coming in for a quick drink or takeaway.

 

Besides that, there were only noises from the squeaky sounds shoes make each time Hiro took a step and the soft breathing of humans. Hiro finally slumped on one of the chairs and sighed loudly, his legs aching from having to stand about and move around for three hours straight. He had made another mental note, he was _not_ the athletic type.

 

Tadashi had finally come out from the kitchen, his eyes gleaming with satisfaction before he spotted Hiro and smiled. Walking up to the younger Hamada, Tadashi sat down next to him with a small huff and a fit of chuckles escaping from his lips. Hiro smiled to himself before he looked around. “What a day, huh?” Tadashi asked as Hiro looked at him and gave him a lazy grin.

 

“It’s always like this every Saturday, and sometimes even worse on Sundays,” Hiro said, somehow feeling proud of his aunt’s café. His pride, it turned out, was also buried deep inside this café, after almost twelve years living here. The way that the customers enjoyed their time here and always left with a smile on their faces, made Hiro’s day a bit better. It was as if Cass’s café was like an escape pod from real life, the sweet aroma of cakes, coffee and pastries mixing in air magically to ward off any worries and problems a person was facing. Tadashi chuckled out again before he nodded.

 

“Your aunt does make awesome pastries, especially her pies,” he said slowly as Hiro looked at him from the corner of his eyes and laughed silently.

 

“And I’m sure you want a slice, huh?” Hiro asked as Tadashi shrugged.

 

“You said it, not me,” he said as Hiro just got up from his seat and walked up to the small counter so he would get a slice for Tadashi. Cass soon came out from the kitchen with a loud sigh in contempt.

 

“Thank you, Tadashi. It was hectic today and you just came in time,” Cass said as Hiro appeared from behind her with that slice of pie and placed it in front of Tadashi. Cass smiled at that before she shook her head and looked at her wrist watch.

 

“You’re welcome,” Tadashi grinned out before he looked at the delicious pie. “How much is this?”

 

“It’s free for all your help,” Cass interjected before Hiro could say anything. “I do have to be somewhere though. Hiro, can you take care of the café for a few hours?”

 

“Where are you going?” Hiro asked as he raised an eye at Cass. His aunt only smiled before she walked up to him and messed up his hair as she passed him.

 

“To get some groceries since most of ingredients are running out,” she said as Hiro nodded. “I’ll be back soon. See you, Tadashi.”

 

With that, Hiro and Tadashi were left alone in the café. Hiro remained silent for a while before he spotted his cat, Mochi, trotting down from the stairs and heading towards them, her tail swishing left and right before it stopped in front of Hiro. Hiro looked at it before he bent down and grabbed the cat, sitting down on his seat once more. The fat cat squirmed a bit before it settled on his lap quietly, enjoying the silent petting. “Mochi is quite fond of you,” Hiro said absent-mindedly after a while, noticing how the cat had fallen asleep on Hiro’s lap.

 

Tadashi just chuckled as he took a bite out of his pie. “Maybe she likes me,” he said slowly as Hiro shook his head gently.

 

“Maybe,” he said softly. “She doesn’t like strangers though and yet, she seems real fond of you.”

 

Tadashi didn’t say anything as he continued to eat his pie. Hiro looked away from the cat and to Tadashi, searching his face for a while only to realise that he couldn’t get anything from him at the end. Tadashi noticed Hiro was staring at him before he looked back at the younger Hamada, somehow feeling slightly uncomfortable. “What?” he asked as Hiro shook his head.

 

“I’m just wondering what my friends will say when they see you,” he said as Tadashi raised an eyebrow at him. “Maybe they’ll end up getting freaked out.”

 

“Or, they don’t have to meet me,” Tadashi said slowly as Hiro laughed.

 

“Yeah, I don’t need you to get dissected and examined,” Hiro said as Tadashi gulped silently, a few streaks of fear washing over his eyes as Hiro looked at him amused. Before he could do anything, Tadashi had taken another bite of his pie and somehow, he had bitten his tongue.

 

“Ouch!” Tadashi yelped out as he held out his tongue. Hiro just bit his bottom lip from laughing out loud. Tadashi just looked at Hiro before he gave him a weak smile. Silence enveloped for a few seconds when suddenly, Hiro heard the familiar light thumps walking down the stairs. _Oh no_ , Hiro muttered in his mind before he looked at the entrance and found Baymax trotting over.

 

“Baymax!” Hiro exclaimed as he stood up, dropping Mochi on the floor along the way. “You _heard_ that?”

 

“Hiro, I heard a call of distress and pain,” Baymax said as he spotted Tadashi. Tadashi immediately stood up and stared at that white bot. His eyes grew wide as he stared at Baymax. Hiro just glanced at him before he sighed and looked back at the bot.

 

“What—”

 

“It’s hardly a call of distress and pain,” Hiro muttered, cutting Tadashi’s sentence before he walked up to Baymax.

 

“A diagnosis should be taken to—”

 

Before Baymax could say or do anything, Hiro had grabbed onto his chubby arm and dragged him away. “He’s fine, Baymax,” Hiro said as Baymax reluctantly followed him. As they walked up to his room, Baymax finally stopped trying to get back to Tadashi and stared at Hiro.

 

“You can just lie down and relax, Baymax,” Hiro said as he pushed Baymax deeper into his room before sighing.

 

“But he—”

 

“He’s _fine_ ,” Hiro stressed out. “He just bit his tongue while eating the pie.”

 

“Then he should apply some antiseptic cream,” Baymax offered out as Hiro chuckled and nodded.

 

“Yeah, thanks, I’ll give him that then,” Hiro said as Baymax trotted back to the red box. “I’m satisfied with your care.”

 

Baymax nodded before he went back to his state of charging, deflating before Hiro jogged down the stairs to check on Tadashi. He spotted the man just petting Mochi who was now curled up against him as he sat down on his seat. Hiro walked up to him before he smiled at Tadashi sheepishly. “Sorry, that was Baymax.”

 

Tadashi looked at him and grinned a bit. “Baymax?”

 

“It’s a nurse bot my brother made,” Hiro said slowly before he retook his seat. “He was supposed to help people in need. Tadashi Hamada enjoyed helping people…,” Hiro said slowly. “Until he had sacrificed himself for someone like—” but Hiro stopped before continuing, realising that he was heading down to that road and he was getting angry again.

 

“A nurse bot, huh?” Tadashi asked, simply changing the subject as Hiro looked up at him and nodded, pushing away that memory to the back of his mind. He noticed how Tadashi’s eyes glistened in what seemed like mild amusement and curiosity.

 

“Baymax can overreact sometimes,” Hiro said as he chuckled out. “But—he’s a good friend.”

 

Tadashi just remained quiet before he looked back at Mochi and continued to pat her, silence enveloping them. “He is cuddly looking,” Tadashi spoke again as Hiro nodded.

 

“My brother wanted to make him look friendly,” Hiro continued for the sake of getting some closure on this story. “But I upgraded him and this is more or less a clone of the original Baymax.”

 

“What happened to the original one?” Tadashi asked, sounding slightly surprised as he looked at Hiro. The younger Hamada just grinned out before he shrugged playfully.

 

“Baymax tried to save me from inside this portal. He gave me his chip though, the original chip that Tadashi created. So, more or less, this is Baymax in his second body,” Hiro said as Tadashi nodded. “So, yeah, I give him upgrades now and then. He’s also a crime-fighting bot now.” Hiro seemed proud at that as Tadashi raised an eyebrow at him.

 

“A crime-fighting bot too?” he asked, sounding amused as Hiro nodded.

 

“Yeah, I was fourteen and angry. Baymax became my superhero pal. Still is, just Big Hero 6 don’t get around all the time to save San Fransokyo nowadays,” Hiro clarified as Tadashi nodded.

 

“Big Hero 6, huh?” Tadashi asked as Hiro chuckled a bit.

 

“It was a suitable name.” Tadashi just nodded before he smiled at Hiro.

 

Somehow, that was all said and done between them. Nothing else was exchanged as Hiro enjoyed Tadashi’s company. That topic came to a close and yet, nobody made a move to start a new conversation, so the silence was their company, joining them as they enjoyed each other’s presence. Sometimes, Hiro would glance at Tadashi in the eyes, to catch what he was feeling at the moment and for a second—he thought he would see remorse and sadness.

 

He thought he would see some kind of memory fleeting across those brown orbs.  

 

He didn’t know why he had assumed that that was what Tadashi was feeling at the moment but it was. He knew that look anywhere. He had grown up with that look, aimed at everyone sometimes but not at Hiro. He remembered the last time he saw that look on his brother’s face; it was when their parents had died. How Tadashi had held him close, how he had tried to look indifferent and alright but he couldn’t stop his tears at the end.

 

Hiro remembered, despite him being only four years old at that time, he remembered that pain, remorse and sadness, blaring out from his brother’s eyes like they were advertising it to the world.

 

He remembered how Tadashi had told him that he would take care of Hiro, that he would always be the one to be with Hiro through the darkest or the purest times. Tadashi had promised that he would never show any emotions that were similar to what they were feeling ten years ago ever again as long as he lived.

 

And yet, in this look alike of his brother, he saw that look again in those brown eyes.

 

It confused Hiro a bit but then, he would have to remind himself that this wasn’t his Tadashi.

 

So, Hiro shoved it to the back of his mind and left that thought there.

 

This wasn’t his Tadashi.

 

Deciding that at last, he relaxed into the warm atmosphere, occasionally glancing at Tadashi who was petting the cat and eating the pie.

 

Somehow, everything was normal again.

 

Even if it was for a second.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well...that was quite warm, don't you think~? It's a bit shorter than chapter 2 but for now, I'm ending this chapter here. I have other plans for the next chapter! Anyways, thanks once again to those who have commented, gave me kudos and bookmarked this as well as those who had subscribed! Oh, and those who had just read. It really means a lot to me when I get encouragements. But that still doesn't really eliminate my obvious paranoia of making the characters OOC or if some of the emotions were tad off. Ya...so do comment! Comment to let me know what you guys thought of this chapter~ I'll see you guys in the next chappie! -Krystal


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’ll run away with your footsteps, I’ll build a city that dreams for two, And if you lose yourself, I will find you – Find You (Zedd feat. Matthew Koma & Miriam Bryant)
> 
> Disclaimer: Not mine!

 

 

Tadashi had gone back home by the time it was nearing dinner time. Cass had insisted that he should stay for dinner, especially when he had helped so much that day. But the man just shook his head, letting her know that he was fine with the pie and having their company on a boring day. Hiro, even though he didn’t say anything and just stood there listening to them, secretly had wanted Tadashi to stay. He wanted this man to eat dinner with them, just for the sake that he could keep on staring at his face.

 

So, when Tadashi still refused and left under a polite note, Hiro felt slight waves of disappointment washing inside of him. The younger Hamada didn’t want to admit anything about those waves of disappointment but it struck him heavily and suddenly, the completion sense that the atmosphere held quickly dissipated into nothingness and huge blankness. It was as if when Tadashi had left, he had taken away some sense of familiarity away.

 

Their normalcy was suddenly with a hole in them, just like how when the older Hamada had died.

 

Hiro didn’t want to believe that he had somehow managed to convey some bond with this man despite the fact that he had only met him for a few days, but the truth was too bright and too sharp for him to ignore, because despite it all, he somehow did, even if the bond was not that thick or not that long. The young genius didn’t want to believe that he wanted Tadashi to stay with him longer than necessary, but inside, buried deep into the darkest depths of his heart, he did. It didn’t matter if he didn’t say anything to Hiro, just sitting next to him would suffice and suddenly, when Tadashi had left, it caused Hiro’s insides to be blanched with whiteness and painless stabs.

 

Touching his chest absent-mindedly as he watched Tadashi leave, he realised that the soft soreness he didn’t feel all this while starting to make itself known once again. Hiro hated this, hated how he suddenly found himself wanting to spend more time than necessary with _this_ Tadashi.

 

Why? Why was he being so _pathetic_ all of a sudden?

 

He didn’t know why.

 

He felt tired, drenched out as if that man had taken away all of his energy by just leaving him. Cass sighed softly, her eyes shading into what seemed like sadness before she shook her head. “So much like him,” her voice murmured out, sounding slightly wet. Hiro just stood there and nodded numbly.

 

_Tadashi, don’t go._

 

* * *

 

 “Upgrading?” Wasabi asked as they all lounged in the shared laboratory. Hiro had just ended his morning classes, immediately crashing into the lab with a loud dramatic sigh, showing how bored he was. He was glad though, when he saw his friends in the lab, already busy doing whatever it was that they were doing. Looking around, he noticed that Gogo still hadn’t finished with her classes, and somehow, the younger Hamada was secretly glad he didn’t have to deal with her yet.

 

She was certainly someone that he needed more than enough energy to deal with.

 

For now, he knew that his mind was too noisy for whatever Gogo was about to make him do today. So, when he spotted Wasabi doing nothing in particular, Hiro had sat down next to him and talked to him, occasionally watching if Honey Lemon was still testing out her exploding balls. He didn’t want to end up on the ground once more. His back was more than angry at him nowadays so he didn’t need to add more kinks and bruises to it.

 

Somehow, their conversation had directed to the low activity of Big Hero 6. Sure, when they first defeated Callaghan, crimes rate increased in the past two months and they were there to stop all the crimes from happening. But after that, time passed and the crime rates began to plunder down the graph and suddenly, they found their superhero days nearly coming to an end.

 

To a screeching halt and Hiro didn’t find any need to upgrade their suits since they weren’t going to use them for a long time. But the thought still had been swimming in his genius waters. He was always thinking how to make Gogo move faster and how to make Fredzilla’s suit more—more fire-breathing dragon plus Godzilla. So, he kept them stored at the back of his mind every time he thought of a new way to increase a certain feature of the suit.

 

He just didn’t have the time to upgrade them personally since the SFIT’s assignments were like a pain in the neck to him. Sure, he would’ve finished them up in just mere two days what normal people would take five weeks to complete and hello—this was Hiro. He had graduated when he was _thirteen_ and saved San Fransokyo when he was _fourteen_.

 

Either so, that didn’t really make Hiro do his work any quicker, instead, he took his time to finish his reports and assignments, his brother’s words echoing in his mind gently whenever he took things too fast at his age. He remembered one time where the older Hamada had told him to enjoy it while he was still a teen and in his young days. He shouldn’t be taking things too fast just because he can.

 

There would be a time when those things would come to him in a specific stage in his life. There was no need for Hiro to quickly get up on his feet just for the sake of taking challenges that weren’t made for him yet—sixteen and a genius or not. So, Hiro took each passing day and tried to keep his life in a slow pace, well, as slow as this younger Hamada could anyways.

 

He was going to embrace life as if he didn’t get the chance to do it.

 

Besides, Tadashi had proven a good point when he died.

 

And if his death taught Hiro anything, it was that this prolonged session of someone’s life could stop at any time, at any day and at any second.

 

“Yeah,” Hiro mused a bit before he looked at Wasabi with a grin. Wasabi just raised an eyebrow before he leaned against his seat.

 

“Hiro,” he said. “Why do our suits need upgrading now? We haven’t battled anything for almost one and half years, man.”

 

“Exactly why,” Hiro said as he shrugged his shoulders effortlessly. “They’re outdated and say, if we need them one day, at least they’ll be in more current designs.”

 

“Good point,” Wasabi said as he nodded, agreeing to Hiro’s argument. Silence took over before Wasabi looked back at the younger Hamada. “So, when do we it?”

 

Hiro laughed gently at that. “I’m not sure.”

 

Wasabi just rolled his eyes at him before they went back staring at Honey Lemon, who was currently using Fred for her experiments. Fred looked as if he wanted nothing more than just to sit down on his chair and look at other geniuses do their stuff. Hiro was sure that Fred had zero interest on being some lab rat. But since Fred was already and still was wearing that mascot suit most of the time, he did make a fine lab rat—lizard if Hiro said so himself. Biting his lip from laughing out loud at that thought, Hiro continued to watch them.

 

“If my calculations are right, Fred, you should turn into purple the moment I pour this solution on you,” she said happily as Fred’s eyes widened, followed by Wasabi’s screech of ‘ _What_?’ Hiro couldn’t help as he let a few chuckles to escape through his lips.

 

“ _Purple_?” Fred asked, even though amusement and excitement painted on the man’s face for a while, fear overshadowed them immediately when he saw Honey picking up the conical flask filled with sizzling light yellow solution. Taking a step back, he tried his best to hold up a brave face. However, before Honey could pour even a drop on him, despite that he was wearing his lizard suit, the door to the lab flapped open and walked in was Gogo, popping her bubble gum.

 

“Gogo!” Honey exclaimed happily. Gogo just raised an eyebrow at her before she saw what she was about to do.

 

“Do I _want_ to know?” she asked as Wasabi was still looking ahead at the scene in front of him. Hiro turned his head slightly to look at Gogo before grinning widely.

 

“Do you?” he asked as Gogo shrugged.

 

“Not really,” she said as she walked to her desk and looked around for something. “Anyway, I’m going to grab something to eat. Anyone wants to follow me?” she asked as she turned around to look at her friends. Wasabi just shook his head meanwhile Honey had already poured the liquid on Fred. It took seconds, like she had predicted, for Fred’s suit to turn into light purple. Fred, somehow along the way, had closed his eyes and he opened them slowly when Honey was beaming happily at him.

 

“Yay! It worked,” she said as she laughed a bit, once again reminding Hiro about the laughter coming from mad scientists. Suddenly, the younger Hamada didn’t feel safe here. Standing up, he looked at Gogo and nodded.

 

“I’ll come along,” he said as Gogo smiled at him before they walked out of the lab.

 

“Buy me some apple juice along the way!” Hiro heard Fred’s voice before the doors closed out. Chuckling, he quickly followed Gogo to around the campus.

 

* * *

 

 

Hiro finally had wandered away from Gogo when she said she needed to get back to the lab to finish up on her new inventions, carrying the small box of apple juice along the way. As he watched her leave, Hiro just sighed loudly. She had somehow forced him to eat something other than some candy bar. It wasn’t as if Hiro wanted anything else other than that candy bar since he wasn’t really hungry but Gogo wasn’t really a woman who would take a no for an answer.

 

He had learned this the hard way once, so he didn’t test her again.

 

But despite it all, Hiro didn’t want to get back to the lab, one for many reasons was because he was currently bored. He really didn’t have the urge to build anything new. He would later go back to his personal lab and finish up one of Tadashi’s experiments, but for now, he wasn’t really in the mood to do anything. So, instead, he started to walk around SFIT, trying to explore new places. His mind currently blank, he let his feet do the wandering and his eyes do the sightseeing.

 

What he didn’t expect to do was end up in the Biomed part of SFIT.

 

Hiro didn’t know why he just didn’t turn around and walk away, but the idea of Biomed itself intrigued him enough deep inside that kept him moving in deeper. He noticed that some of the students were wearing lab coats meanwhile others looked like they were just having a great time. Unlike robotic students such as himself, they had more of a medical aura around them that Hiro found to be appealing. They also had that friendly, cuddly atmosphere hanging in the air and Hiro found this really warm to him.

 

Hiro rarely saw them around in the first place. The different majors in SFIT didn’t really meet out often. In fact, Hiro, for the past two years studying here, hadn’t really noticed anyone else than robotic students and that was because none of them really wanted to leave their comfort zone.

 

So, he ventured in a little deeper, enjoying what he was seeing. As he took a sharp left, his brown eyes immediately caught onto a familiar silhouette. Hiro’s breath hitched as he quickly turned around and hid behind the turn against the wall, his face scrunching up in a momentary panic. After a few seconds, Hiro slowly took a peek from the corner and looked at the hallways ahead, noticing that the familiar man wasn’t there anymore. In fact, he thought he saw the person walking into one of the labs.

 

Hiro pondered in his mind for a few seconds if he should continue this pursue, but after a while, the longing of wanting to see Tadashi again was too great to be ignored. With that, he slowly moved away from the wall and turned to the corner. With that, he cautiously approached the lab door which he was sure Tadashi— _that_ Tadashi had gone in. He felt his heart beating slightly faster and his body started to coordinate wrongly.

 

He was nervous to see him again after yesterday.

 

Something inside of him was aching once more.

 

Hiro didn’t know what to do but apparently his body did, because the next thing he had found himself doing, he was too late to stop himself.

 

“Hiro?” the voice asked, sounding slightly shocked. Hiro blinked a few times before he quickly looked back at the lab door. Had he just walked in? Had his body just moved without him wanting to?

 

Curse himself!

 

Hiro mentally scolded himself for it before looking back at Tadashi, who was currently looking at Hiro with the shock gone but amusement lingering on his face. The younger Hamada looked at the man before he saw that he was currently wearing a lab coat and had stopped halfway when Hiro walked in. Tadashi just chuckled at the silence before he proceeded to wear his lab coat and walked to his latest invention. “What are you _wearing_?” Hiro finally asked, mentally slapping himself at that question.

 

But somehow, he couldn’t find it in himself to not have asked.

 

He had never seen Tadashi wearing a lab coat before and surprisingly, it looked good on him.

 

As if it was made just for him.

 

But before he could continue on his thoughts, he stopped himself, realisation causing him to screech his mental thoughts into an abrupt stop.

 

This _wasn’t_ his brother.

 

So, that lab coat couldn’t have been made just for him.

 

Hiro suddenly found this worrisome. As much as he told him that nobody could replace Tadashi, the fear was still evident deep inside. Now the fear was letting itself known in a more blaring way when Hiro had made a mistake on assuming that this Tadashi—was _his_ Tadashi.

 

No, this wasn’t good.

 

Panic slowly pooled at the pit of his stomach. How could he had forgotten that this wasn’t his Tadashi?

 

This wasn’t his Tadashi!

 

He mentally yelled at himself for this. He had feared this would happen. He promised himself that nobody would replace his Tadashi, so how could he had even though that this Tadashi was his Tadashi? This was just as good as accepting that his Tadashi was worth forgetting.

 

 _No_!

 

He _wasn’t_!

 

Hiro wouldn’t let him forget about his beloved brother.

 

This panic was mocking him, making him relive that moment over and over again.

 

“Hiro?” the voice slowly questioned as Hiro flinched at the easiness and worry in it. It sounded just like his Tadashi’s—

 

No! This wasn’t Tadashi!

 

How many times had he have to remind himself?

 

Shaking his head slowly, something tore itself deep inside of Hiro. The cold realisation had taken him far too back. He felt so sick, realising that he had wanted to replace this man as his Tadashi. No, in fact, Hiro found out, that a part of him needed this man to be his Tadashi. It was cruel and it was something animalistic for Hiro to do to his Tadashi.

 

Had all this time with Tadashi meant nothing at all for him if he could easily replace this man for his brother?

 

 _Had_ it?

 

“Hiro, what’s wrong? You look pale,” Tadashi’s voice cut into his thoughts, nice and clean like a sharp knife. Hiro immediately jerked away as he looked at that man. Thick, unarmed, silence hung in the air as Tadashi’s eyes widened as he looked at the younger Hamada from across the room. “Hiro?”

 

Hiro, then, felt the wetness on his cheeks. He, then, felt the small trembles making way through his body as he stared at the man who had his brother’s face of worry pasted on. Anger suddenly bubbled in his stomach.

 

How dare he look like his Tadashi?

 

But that anger was directed more to himself.

 

His stares became cold until they morphed into sheer glares. Tadashi took a step back at the sudden display of emotions as confusion filled those warm brown eyes. Hiro took a step back as he felt the makings of a sob trying to mark way through his lips. He wouldn’t cry. He wouldn’t!

 

Suddenly, he couldn’t stop himself.

 

He wanted to hug him.

 

The man in front of him, he wanted to bury his face into his chest and just sob out. As much as he hated himself for almost forgetting about the real Tadashi, he couldn’t find anything inside of him to deny this Tadashi. _It was better than nothing_ , he said slowly in his mind. That was why he recognised he agreed to be Tadashi’s friend.

 

He wanted to have that bond he had with his brother, even if he wouldn’t have it a hundred percent. He wanted to feel loved again, like he had felt when he was with his brother. He wanted to be someone else’s first priority again. Even though Cass did all of that, she still wasn’t someone as close to Hiro as Tadashi was. And this Tadashi, he just came into Hiro’s life in the same manner his Tadashi would and he had accepted him, even before he knew he did.

 

He had accepted this Tadashi even before Hiro could accept himself.

 

Somehow, something inside of him knew that he needed this even more.

 

And yet, still, this wasn’t what he wanted as well.

 

He didn’t want to forget his brother!

 

“Hiro, you’re being weird,” Tadashi spoke out as he took a few steps closer to the now trembling mess of Hamada. But before Tadashi could take another step, Hiro forced out a sharp yell at him, making him to stop on his tracks.

 

“Stay away!” Hiro yelled, his eyes leaving Tadashi’s face before closing them. “Just, stay away.”

 

“Hiro, what’s wrong?” Tadashi asked slowly. Silence once again took in before Hiro shook his head. “Hiro, I need to know—”

 

“You’re _not_ my _brother_.”

 

That mere sentence took the silence into a whole new depth and with that, Hiro had left, leaving a stunned Tadashi behind. Hiro didn’t regret what he had said, but he still felt guilty. The slight guilt was there, but so did the immense annoyance, anger, depression and sadness. He sometimes didn’t know who he was anymore.

 

Would his Tadashi be proud of him now if he saw Hiro like this?

 

The mere thought sent cold chills down his spine, just imagining the thought of Tadashi being disappointed of him. It was a horrid image in his head and he wanted to bleach it out as much as he could. He didn’t want Tadashi to be disappointed in himself. He didn’t do this to himself.

 

With that thought in mind, he just ran away, trying his best to get as far as he could from there.

 

* * *

 

 

He had gone back home right after. In fact, as he walked home, he made sure that he kept the tears on. He needed to let go all of them before he made his way back to the café. He didn’t want to scare Cass with his sudden sobbing. It wasn’t that he needed to protect his masculinity, but he just didn’t think Cass could make him feel better.

 

Nothing can.

 

He was a fool to think that being friends with his brother’s look alike could help him.

 

Nothing and nobody can.

 

Unless Tadashi had come back alive from the dead mysteriously, nobody can help him.

 

Some passer-by gave him weird looks but Hiro didn’t care. Instead, he felt slightly better once he felt like he had cried three buckets full. By the time he had reached the café, his whole face felt numb, especially near his eyes. In fact, he doubted he could fool Cass about why his eyes were so wet, red and puffy. Great, so he really didn’t think this through after all.

 

But to his luck, when he had entered the café, he didn’t spot Cass anywhere. So, before she could realise that he was back, he quickly walked ahead to the stairs and got into his room, closing the door with a small thud. Sighing loudly, he walked to his bed and threw his bag at the foot before plummeting straight into the soft pillows.

 

He was officially dead inside.

 

Somehow.

 

Whatever.

 

He closed his eyes for a moment to let the memories of his real brother to calm him down before he opened his red puffy eyes. Guilt washed waves per waves inside of him when he recalled what he had done to that Tadashi. He had snapped at him once again. But even though guilt took over, he also felt slightly relieved that he did let that sentence get out. It was like some kind of reminder for Hiro about the real Tadashi.

 

Something so loud so he wouldn’t think about that Tadashi as his Tadashi anymore.

 

Shaking his head gently, he just wanted to take a short nap and clear his thoughts. He felt exhausted and worn out. His body starting to ache from the long walk since he didn’t take a bus. With that, he felt the tiredness seeping into him before he finally let the darkness claim him.

 

* * *

 

 

“Hiro?” a small voice cooed at him gently. The voice sounded echoic and deep. As if it was miles away from him. In his foggy mind, he didn’t think anything of it. In fact, he didn’t know where he was. “Hiro.” The voice called out again, this time sounding a bit louder and slightly closer. Hiro grunted under his breath as he furrowed his eyebrows. “Hiro…”

 

Hiro only managed out a short, stubbed, ‘ _What_?’ out from his lips before he cracked his eyelids slightly. He heard gentle chuckles and they sounded so warm and familiar that it made Hiro smile gently. A few seconds flickered before he closed his eyes again, just wanting to get back to his dreamland.

 

“Oh, come on,” he heard the person sighing under his breath before he felt someone shaking his shoulders. “It’s almost dinner-time and your aunt is really adamant on waking you up.”

 

“Tell her five more minutes, ‘Adashi,” Hiro mumbled before he buried his face in his pillows.

 

One.

 

Two.

 

 _Three_.

 

Immediately raising his head and opening his eyes wide and alert, he turned his head to the left and saw Tadashi looking back at him, his arms crossed against his chest, an amused smirk on his face. Hiro blinked at him for a while before he panicked and quickly pushed himself sitting on the bed. He looked away from Tadashi before he looked around his room, confusion filling up his mind for a moment or two.

 

What the hell was going on here?

 

Tadashi, however, found this really amusing as he couldn’t help but a few fits of chuckles to escape his lips. Hiro quickly licked his lips before looking back at Tadashi. “What happened?” he asked, warily, his mind was starting to clear up as he saw Tadashi rolling his eyes at him. “Tadashi?” he asked softly, suddenly finding himself a bit hopeful. Hopeful of what? He wasn’t sure yet.

 

“Yeah?” he asked. “You fell asleep, I suppose. Your aunt was worried about you. I came by to check on you after that little stunt you pulled in the Biomed lab and—”

 

“Wait, what? Biomed—” And that’s when the memories flashed into his mind and a particular sentence had cut through his thoughts like a sharp knife, ‘ _You’re not my brother’_ ringing out loud and clear in his mind, causing him to flinch painfully at that. Guilt washed into him but so did the fear and once again the panic. He avoided Tadashi’s eyes before he looked to his hands. Silence ended up clouding them before Tadashi sighed loudly.

 

“Not _again_.” Hiro heard Tadashi muttered out loud but Hiro couldn’t help it. He felt helpless all over again. His hopefulness died down and crashed when he realised this wasn’t his brother. Tears stung his eyes slowly. He couldn’t believe it. He was so pathetic now. “Hiro,” Tadashi’s voice was comforting and soft. Before Hiro could open his mouth to yell at him again, Tadashi had taken the liberty to slowly sit next to him. “ _Let me help_.”

 

That sentence had ended up sealing Hiro’s mouth from letting anything out. His eyes widened as he looked at Tadashi in the eyes, the tears threatening to fall. Tadashi smiled gently before he scooted closer to Hiro, experimenting at how close Hiro would let him come near. “W—what?”

 

“Hiro, let me help you,” he said slowly, hoping the sentence would somehow register in the young Hamada’s mind without alerting him or panicking him. Hiro just stared at Tadashi for a moment, contemplating on what he should do. His mind trying to pick up the threat of replacing the real Tadashi but at the end, he just found sincerity.

 

Achingly, he asked, “How?”

 

Tadashi shrugged at that. “I’m not sure,” he said in a hushed voice. “However you like. As much as you want me to help you.”

 

Hiro remained quiet for a while before the tears filled up his eyes again. The warmth plastered on that man’s face was making Hiro feel better already. But despite it all, he still wanted something more—more physical. Something comfier than his pillows. Something that would make him want to drown in body warmth so he didn’t have to turn up the heaters anymore. Before he could think much of his actions, he immediately placed his arms around Tadashi’s chest and wound himself up close until Hiro’s face mushed against Tadashi’s chest. Silence filled in for a moment as Tadashi sat there completely frozen, unsure of what he was supposed to do next.

 

Sure, Tadashi had said he wanted to help, but the younger Hamada began to think that this wasn’t what the man had in mind. His fogginess started to clear up and suddenly, Hiro realised what he was doing a minute later before he tried move away. What the hell was he doing? He was going to scare off everyone important to him! “I-I’m sorry, I—”

 

“It’s okay,” Tadashi suddenly said, breaking out of his trance of shock as the man quickly wrapped his strong arms around Hiro and dragged the boy against his chest, just cradling him like anyone would to a sad five-year-old. The younger Hamada felt himself going stiff but after a while, he felt himself relaxing. He didn’t feel embarrassed at the moment but his mind was too clouded to think rationally at the moment. His tears were welling up in his eyes again before he ended up in a stifling sob, trying his best to calm himself down when he realised how overwhelming this simple warmth was against him.

 

He felt so loved at the moment, as if someone was trying to place three hundred ton of affections into this hug. Hiro buried his face deeper into the chest, feeling the firmness yet the warmness of Tadashi’s chest warming himself up from within. It felt just like his Tadashi’s. Somehow, he felt one of Tadashi’s hands moving up and down his back, trying to calm the younger Hamada down. “It’s alright, Hiro,” he said slowly as he let Hiro cry it out.

 

“I feel so sc—scared,” Hiro finally admitted it, making Tadashi pause momentarily before he continued, encouraging Hiro to continue.

 

“Just let it all out, Hiro,” he said, after a while not getting any feedback from Hiro. “It’s better to just let them all out.”

 

Clutching onto Tadashi’s clothes as he bawled them up under his hand, Hiro closed his eyes and took in a shaky breath, inhaling Tadashi’s scent along the way. He smelt like flowers, like the cherry blossoms, Hiro noted. He never knew what his Tadashi smelt like and even if he did, he would’ve forgotten about it since the last time he was so close to Tadashi, he was around nature. He never got to know how his brother really smelt like but this, this softness in scent, Hiro decided to take this as his Tadashi’s scent as well.

 

“I’m scared that I’ll—that I’ll replace him with you,” Hiro slowly, almost muffled by the way his face buried deep inside Tadashi’s chest. Tadashi could only remain quiet, letting Hiro to continue on once again. “I keep forgetting—I keep—I forgot a moment that you’re not him. You look, you talk, you just—so similar to my Tadashi that I forget that you’re not him. I feel so scared that one day, I’ll forget all about him! I can’t—I can’t forget him. You’re not my brother! You’re not! _You are not him_!”

 

“Hiro,” Tadashi hushed him slowly. “Hiro, calm down.”

 

“I can’t,” Hiro sobbed out. “You just make me forget about him sometimes. You make me forget about this pain inside. You make me forget the reason why I get up every morning. This dull ache, inside here,” Hiro said again as he slowly traced his hand away from Tadashi’s back to his chest and placed it there. “The pain there, in me, it disappears when I see you. When I talk to you, when I’m with you. Like—like—like he’s back. Like you—like you are him and I just, I wished it was true. Why, _why couldn’t you be him_?”

 

That last question had once again caused Tadashi to stop his ministration. Hiro, however, was too lost to think about it as he slowly took his face away from Tadashi’s chest to look at him in the eyes, the tears had stopped somehow but the look of a broken boy clearly on his face, making Tadashi’s eyes widen. “Why?” he asked silently, his voice hoarse.

 

“Hiro,” Tadashi said slowly. Hiro noticed how Tadashi’s eyes were brimming with tears but under this dimply-lighted room, Hiro couldn’t be so sure. Hiro’s eyes widened a fraction bigger at those eyes. Confusion suddenly filled Hiro’s mind. He even thought he saw immense pain in Tadashi’s eyes but he couldn’t be sure. But overall, Hiro didn’t want to be sure, so he ignored them. He was too tired for this. “I’m sorry.”

 

Hiro just chuckled out, brokenly. “You can’t be sorry. You didn’t do anything wrong. I just—god, what am I doing?” Hiro said slowly as the realisation dawned in him. Slowly, he pulled his hands away from Tadashi but somehow, Tadashi didn’t let him go. “Tadashi, sorry. I—I was just—”

 

“Your brother loved you very much, Hiro,” Tadashi said suddenly and the words were so sharp that Hiro was taken aback. “I’m sure of it. From anything I heard from your aunt, from anything I heard from you, he had loved you too much. I’m sorry I can’t be him, Hiro. But—but there’s no way someone can forget the person they loves the most, no matter how hard they try.”

 

Hiro tried to open his mouth to speak but Tadashi just cut him off again, suddenly placing his hand on Hiro’s chest, shocking Hiro. “Hiro,” he said softly. “You can never replace him and you can never forget him. He’s still there and close to you. Alright? Closer than you may ever think of. So, don’t be scared. Even when you think you’re forgetting, you’re really just remembering him.”

 

Hiro stared at the man in the eyes, confusion clouding at why Tadashi seemed so serious but when he saw the sincerity, the secret emotions playing in those brown eyes, Hiro thought he saw the sparks of recognition.

 

Recognition of him.

 

Recognition of Hiro.

 

Hiro didn’t know what to say as his throat closed out for words. He felt his heart beating wildly suddenly and his cheeks reddening. Suddenly, everything seemed so funny. Those words, that advice that this Tadashi was giving was like something soothing, making him forget about his fears.

 

His irrational fears.

 

“I’m sure, Hiro,” Tadashi continued as the man smiled, even though it was grim and painful. “I’m sure, he never stopped thinking about you.”

 

Hiro felt so relived at those words. He didn’t know why but he did and Hiro ended up smiling widely. It was as if everything was just a bad dream. Hiro’s guilt, fear of forgetting his brother, sadness at losing him, it rolled into a ball and was burned to the ground by Tadashi’s words. Looking into those warm brown eyes, Hiro couldn’t help but to want to lean into him again. The younger Hamada, despite sixteen, he was still the fourteen-year-old boy inside that his Tadashi had left behind that night. And somehow, this Tadashi knew about it.

 

“You think?” Hiro asked softly as Tadashi chuckled and nodded.

 

“I _know_ ,” Tadashi said softly as Hiro shook his head slowly, not really knowing how this Tadashi was so confident with that answer. With that, Hiro scooted closer than before and buried himself back into the man’s chest. Hiro’s mind was slightly clearer and his cheeks were reddening terribly at what he was doing but for now, he didn’t want to care. He liked this warmth, he liked this scent, it was all so soothing and for the first in his life since he had met this Tadashi, it strengthened the memories his Tadashi was in.

 

“Just, stay like this for a while,” Hiro mumbled as he heard Tadashi chuckling before he felt those arms around his body, wrapping them close.

 

“As long as you like,” Tadashi whispered and they all settled down like that for a moment. Hiro no longer crying and in pain, just enjoying the warmth meanwhile Tadashi remaining fixated at just letting Hiro know that everything would be alright.

 

The peace around them was finally in equilibrium and the drama had long passed on. With that Hiro sighed in contempt. However, the peace didn’t really last that long when suddenly, a huge thundering bang vibrated throughout the air, causing everything around them to move slightly off place. Hiro quickly clutched onto Tadashi as the man tightened his grip, trying to keep them both from toppling down. Everything was like a deafening silence as the loud sound stopped. Hiro slowly looked out of the window to see nothing but a faint glow of light coming from somewhere.

 

The huge bang certainly took everyone by surprise. Hiro felt something in him squeezing inside. “What was _that_?” Tadashi asked as Hiro slowly detangled himself from the hug before looking back at the man.

 

Somehow, Hiro felt that he should’ve upgraded their suits yesterday, when he had the chance since nobody had disturbed him. Because right now, he knew that Big Hero 6 was going back into action.

 

“I don’t know,” Hiro whispered as the wheels inside his brain started to turn. Yes, he could feel it.

 

Big Hero 6 was going to go back into action pretty soon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay, here's chapter 4~ Ah, well, this is quite an emotional chapter, eh? I don't know if I got the emotions right or not since I had stared at what I have written for a while and suddenly, I didn't feel that confident anymore. Hahaha...//slap// And oh, ya, some action~! Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter as much I enjoyed writing this, even though it kinda made me sad to write this. D: Thank you for all the kudos, bookmarks, the subscriptions, reads and kudos! They tell me how well I'm doing~ So, okay, do drop a comment about what you guys thought about this chapter before you leave! :D See you guys in the next chappie~ //showers everyone with cookies// -Krystal


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Not mine!
> 
> It’s so easy to fall, to let you back in, even after blaming you for it all – Hanging onto Nothing (Close to Home)

 

 

It had been twenty minutes since the explosion and Hiro and Tadashi were just trying their best to will away the fear. They had called out to Cass but she said that she was fine. After another few minutes of assurance that nothing had hit them on the head or they were injured, they heard Cass calling again.

 

“Hiro? Tadashi?”

 

Hiro slowly stood up and balanced himself on the floor before Tadashi stood up as well, mirroring Hiro’s careful steps as they approached the room door. The younger Hamada slowly touched the doorknob and twirled the door open, looking ahead before sighing. With that, both of them had walked down the stairs, trying to see if anything was out of place. As they entered the café part of the house, they saw Cass, her eyes wide as she stood at the front door of the café.

 

“What’s going on?” Hiro asked as he made way to his aunt, Tadashi following quietly. Cass just looked back at him for moment before she opened the door of the café and walked out, motioning for the two of them to follow. Hiro furrowed his eyebrows slightly as he did, cautiousness filling his demeanour. Something didn’t feel right with this and Hiro was sure he was going to find out soon.

 

“There’s been an explosion at the jewellery store,” she reported carefully as she pointed ahead to a shop, blazing red with fire. Hiro felt his breath leaving his lungs when he saw the damage created.

 

The shop wasn’t that far from Cass’s café, but it was still at a safe range from them. In fact, the crime scene seemed quite small to Hiro’s eyes right now. But despite Hiro had to squint his eyes, he could see the damage created as if someone had created a huge gaping hole in the middle of the store. Hiro could see many people were already surrounding the shop, police sirens already wailing loudly as they approached the scene. Hiro recognised that shop, it was one of the famous jewellery stores here.

 

But to think that right now it was not even recognisable made Hiro cringe inside. “They said a bright blue light was seen jumping out from the store and disappearing immediately from out of sight,” Cass continued gently before she looked at Hiro and Tadashi. The ambulance had arrived already and was checking for any injuries on those who were barely out of the explosion radius. Meanwhile, the fire department had sent two fire trucks to put the fire out, the firefighters working diligently.

 

“Was there any casualties?” Tadashi had asked, his voice sounding tight and somehow a bit of fear mixed in them. Cass just sighed before she rubbed her arms, wrapping them around herself.

 

“I’m not sure but, they said they might have since the explosion was too big.”

 

“And loud,” Hiro added as Cass nodded. “A blue light?” he asked as Cass shrugged.

 

“That’s just the story we got for now. We’re thankfully far enough from that shop.”

 

Hiro thinned his lips as he frowned. “And the blue light disappeared?” the younger Hamada couldn’t help but to question. Cass just looked back at him and nodded.

 

“That’s what we heard,” she said. “After the explosion, I had gone out to see what the commotion was after making sure we’re alright and called the police. It was bad, Hiro. You should’ve seen the fire just now. It was—it was _big_.”

 

Something didn’t click right about that scene but Hiro had little resource to actually find out what was it that was missing. So, with that, he accepted it and sighed. Tadashi just stood behind him and didn’t say anything. In fact, the police did their job after the fire was finally put down, by investigating around and asking eye witnesses. The firefighters made sure the other stores weren’t affected, hoping that the explosion didn’t hurt anyone or cause anything to damage.

 

And that was what had Hiro perplexed for a moment.

 

* * *

 

 

“None of the shops nearby got damaged, _at all_!” Hiro exclaimed as he looked at his friends, who were now crowded in Fred’s room. After the chaotic scene, it was found that besides the shaky ground due to the vibrations of the explosion, nothing else was damaged. The houses and shops nearby, even the ones next to the jewellery shop weren’t damaged at all. They were as structured well as they were from the start. Those who had lived a few shops away from the jewellery shop said they only felt the vibrations of the explosion.

 

Nobody had died and nothing else was harmed and that was what Hiro found mysterious.

 

“And what’s even more confusing is that, those who were near the explosion radius said there was this barrier that covered them from the explosion. Sure, it pushed them to the ground but they said they didn’t feel the heat, in fact, as if there was this—this—safe net only surrounding the jewellery shop when it exploded,” Wasabi said as they stared at each other.

 

“Don’t forget the blue lights, man,” Fred added. “The vanishing blue lights.”

 

“And there’s no footage either,” Hiro said under his breath as he furrowed his eyebrows. “It doesn’t make sense.”

 

The police couldn’t even get the surveillance footage due to static interference. It was a very carefully coordinated plan and it looked really professional. It didn’t sound like a simple crime. And to add it all in account, the thief had also taken precautions as to not have anyone harmed. Just to get his things and disappear.

 

“So, it’s a burglary?” Honey Lemon asked as she looked through her laptop meanwhile Gogo screened through her phone for any clues. Hiro shrugged, sounding more and more confused at each passing moment.

 

“Jewelleries _had_ been stolen,” Wasabi mused as Gogo sighed loudly.

 

“Guess we can’t do anything yet then,” she said as Hiro groaned a bit under his breath.

 

Just when something interesting happened, this anonymity had to end up in this mess as well. “So, Big Hero 6 going back into action?” Fred asked, his eyes gleaming in excitement as Wasabi stared at Fred. Hiro just lolled his head to look at Fred before a demonic grin took over his face.

 

“I think it’s time to upgrade the suits, guys.”

 

The younger Hamada didn’t want to admit it, but this was going to occupy his time greatly. It had been two days since the explosion and that embarrassing confession with Tadashi. Hiro did feel greatly better after realising that this man was going to stay, even if it was for a while before another tragic would take him away from Hiro. The thought was depressing and dark but after what had happened with his Tadashi, Hiro didn’t want to keep his hopes too high, even if this Tadashi had said he would help Hiro forget about the pain.

 

What he had said, to soothe Hiro, it definitely took the younger Hamada aback. It sounded so sincere, so—so— _Tadashi-like_. He could perfectly imagine that that was what his brother would say to him if he was still alive. At that moment, he couldn’t help but to wonder if this Tadashi was really his Tadashi. He didn’t know how he would feel about that, honestly though.

 

He had thought about it, wanting the real Tadashi back but after yesterday’s tiny sparks of recognition in those brown eyes, Hiro wasn’t so sure anymore if that was what he wanted. It was a desperate wish at first but then, slowly, would it really be something he honestly needed?

 

If the reality wasn’t twisted enough, if this really ended up being the truth, Hiro didn’t how he would take it. Maybe he would be alright with it, maybe he would end up hugging Tadashi and making him promise he would never leave the younger Hamada alone again. Or—

 

Or Tadashi would be once-again dead, this time because of Hiro’s wrath. Maybe, not really dead, maybe severely injured to the point Tadashi would end up in the hospital. Hiro still wasn’t really sure but somehow, he found the reality of having the real Tadashi back was scarier than this Tadashi.

 

Shaking away from his thoughts, Hiro sighed again. Looking at his friends, he nodded. He guessed it would be best to wait after all. Since the police themselves couldn’t find any trace of anyone breaking and entering even though some of the jewelleries were missing and there wasn’t any other evidence they could use to frame a suspect, they would just have to wait for the next attack.

 

Hiro suddenly felt really nervous about that.

 

* * *

 

 

The younger Hamada couldn’t really concentrate on his day as he looked at his lecturer blankly. The words didn’t register in his mind and he didn’t think it would make any difference at all even if they did or didn’t. He knew what this man in front of him was talking about, so it made no different for the young genius. However, what right now that bothered Hiro was the blue light that people were talking about. It sounded off and the invisible barriers made him have questions. It wasn’t impossible, not after what Callaghan had almost did last two years ago, and everything else was proven possible since that incident.

 

So, this technology— _if_ it was a technology could’ve existed as well.

 

Slowly, he gathered his things and decided to head out of the class. It wasn’t any use if he couldn’t concentrate anyway. Besides, the professor already had taken his attendance. Catching the professor’s eyes, Hiro nodded at him to indicate that he was leaving and walked out of the lecture hall. He walked aimlessly for a moment before he decided that he should head to Fred’s place to upgrade their suits. They needed it now and there was no saying when the next attack might be, _if there was going to be another attack anyway_ , Hiro reminded himself.

 

As he walked around the institute, he wasn’t really that shocked now when he realised that he ended up around the Biomed branch again. It had been almost three days since he had last seen Tadashi. The man didn’t make any effort to see Hiro since that night and that somehow bothered the younger Hamada from inside. He didn’t know why Tadashi hadn’t come by the café or didn’t bump into Hiro for the past three days.

 

 _Maybe he was busy_ , Hiro said absent-mindedly in his mind, but that still didn’t make the brimming fear inside his heart settle down, in fact, it somehow intensified. What if Tadashi got too weird-out with the sudden display of physical touch from Hiro? He couldn’t help but to frown at that. He was sure that Tadashi was more than happy to comply with that hug, so that couldn’t be it. Even though he had said, it didn’t really mean that he was convinced that that wasn’t the reason why he hadn’t seen the man for almost three days and counting.

 

He sometimes would catch himself thinking about this Tadashi and what he would be doing at the moment. Sometimes, he would catch himself wondering if Tadashi would ever come around to see him again. His heart started to long again, after two years being solitude and quiet. After that night, Hiro found himself wanting to see Tadashi more now. Even with this mystery to solve, it didn’t give Hiro any reason to not see Tadashi.

 

So, he was quite annoyed, maybe mildly saddened and pinch of frightened when he had waited the next day for Tadashi and the man didn’t even come to see him. Not even a phone call! Hiro stopped dead on his tracks for a moment before he blinked. Does Tadashi know his phone number? Hiro pondered at that for a moment before he shrugged. Maybe he did, maybe he didn’t, Hiro wasn’t sure. Maybe he would ask him when he finally saw him.

 

As Hiro navigated through the Biomed branch halls, he couldn’t help but to smile when he felt the wash of warmness and friendliness from the Biomed students. The atmosphere around them somehow contributed to his Tadashi’s live image in his head. Tadashi had that warmness around him and when Hiro was around here, he was immediately reminded him of that. With a soft sigh, Hiro finally found the halls where the labs were located. Now, there was just one problem with this.

 

Hiro wasn’t sure where Tadashi was at the moment.

 

He had taken a second to see if he could ask anyone about Tadashi’s whereabouts but that would just be awkward and Hiro, even though had grown up from his fourteen-year-old shell, definitely didn’t grow up from his fourteen-year-old boy inside. He was still very uncomfortable and probably tad shy when he was dealing with new people. He would literally be shuffling from one foot to another if he was pushed into a group of people he never met. He wouldn’t even know what to say, actually.

 

Gogo had always tried to sharpen his social skills but he would somehow politely reject her at any offer of them going out into crowded places. She didn’t understand that sometimes, Hiro liked being quiet and himself. He liked being less bubbly, less cheerful. He liked to frown once in a while and just unwind by lying on his bed and locking himself in his room, just basking in the peace and solitude. She was a great friend, but she doesn’t understand him like how Tadashi did.

 

Truth to be told, _nobody_ did understand him like how Tadashi did.

 

Shrugging out from his thoughts, his attention immediately caught onto a girl, who had walked into one of the lab with a grin on her face. If that was all, Hiro wouldn’t even glance at her. What made him really intrigued with her was because of what she had said when she entered the lab. “Tadashi!” she exclaimed with a giggle as she walked in, her hair bounced lightly as she tied it up in a high ponytail and disappeared from the view.

 

Hiro raised an eyebrow at that before he hesitated for a moment. After a minute or so, he didn’t think it would harm him in any way and followed her. He slowly walked to the lab door and carefully weighed out his options. He could still turn and walk away, he realised. He didn’t have to do this. He didn’t have to bother Tadashi and he could live with not seeing him for a while. But the pang of loneliness suddenly took over him.

 

He hadn’t seen Tadashi for almost three days and this happened to him. Hiro couldn’t help but to chuckle helplessly. He was acting like some kid who lost his favourite toy. Shaking his head, he decided he would enter anyway and demand an answer to why he didn’t see Tadashi for three days.

 

With that made up in his mind, Hiro walked into the lab, not really bothering to alarm the people inside the lab that he was coming in. To be honest, he didn’t expect anyone else inside the lab. But he was plainly dead wrong when he faced a group of students, trying to collect some data from their experiments, Tadashi being one of them. Tadashi immediately stopped what he was doing to look at who had come in. Hiro’s eyes immediately caught his before Tadashi smiled warmly.

 

“Hiro,” he said as the rest of his team stopped to look at the little intruder. Hiro furrowed his eyebrows for a moment before he cautiously looked away from Tadashi to around him. The girl with the pony-tail even looked at him, her eyebrows high, almost disappearing behind her bangs. Hiro didn’t know why he disliked her the moment he met her, but he did.

 

He didn’t like her.

 

“Uh, hi,” Hiro said awkwardly as Tadashi chuckled and straightened himself from the lab desk.

 

“Came to see me?” Tadashi asked, sounding amused as Hiro finally cracked a gentle smile before dropping it. He wasn’t supposed to go along with this. He was supposed to demand this man in front of him as to why he didn’t come and see Hiro for three days.

 

“Hiro, Hiro Hamada?” the girl with the pony-tail asked, her eyes widening a bit. “Aren’t you that genius in the robotics major?”

 

“Uh, well,” Hiro said, reverting back to his awkwardness as he rubbed the back of his neck, his cheeks flaring slightly. Tadashi couldn’t help but to chuckle at that before he looked back at his team.

 

“He’s a genius alright,” Tadashi complimented as Hiro felt himself regretting his decision. Maybe he should’ve just walk out of here. That was probably the best option he had right now. If Gogo was here, maybe she would’ve made him less scared. Heck, even Fred would’ve made him cracked out in laughter through all of this awkwardness. Especially their stares, why were they staring at him? He wasn’t a science experiment here. Hiro sighed, slightly irked out.

 

“Yeah,” Hiro said. “Can you tell your friends to quit staring at me?”

 

Tadashi chuckled a bit before his so-called friends snapped their gazes and went back to their work. “Sorry, we rarely get visits from students of different branch,” Tadashi explained as Hiro nodded, even though he already deduced that himself. “So, what are you doing here?” Tadashi asked, jolting Hiro away from his wandering thoughts. The younger Hamada slowly looked back at Tadashi before he felt the words at the tip of his tongue. He wanted to ask why Tadashi didn’t visit him but he didn’t think it was appropriate right now.

 

It sounded so personal and Hiro didn’t like his private affairs being someone else’s business.

 

Especially not to that pony-tailed girl who was currently looking at him as if she had found the next best thing.

 

Would she just quit _staring_?

 

“Nothing important,” Hiro said quickly before he turned around and decided to leave. “I’ll just—see you around.” With that, before Tadashi could even say anything else, Hiro had walked out, hoping he didn’t have to see that weird girl who, Hiro had observed silently for the past five minutes, was standing too close to Tadashi as if she was trying to claim him. Hiro found that thought irritating suddenly as he chuckled out bitterly.

 

Why in the world would that make him irritated? Hiro just sighed tiredly. He was having weird thoughts again. He didn’t ponder much on them since he knew that he didn’t have enough sleep. Staying up all night to make sense of this case usually made him think crazy things and he was sure, this was one of those things.

 

“Hiro,” Tadashi’s voice rung out as he felt a hand on his shoulder, stopping him from walking any further. Hiro turned around to look at the man before he sighed for the umpteenth time. Tadashi had clearly chased him down, his lab coat still on but his goggle raised and staying on top of his head like some headband. “You gotta stop running away like that.”

 

“I wasn’t the one running away,” Hiro said as Tadashi raised an eyebrow at that.

 

“Uh-huh,” Tadashi said slowly as he squeezed Hiro’s shoulder, somehow sending out a vibe that they needed to talk. Hiro was still slightly shocked that Tadashi could pick his real intentions from his fake ones. Nobody knew how to do that, only his dead brother could. So, things like these sometimes made him wonder again. What if this Tadashi was really his Tadashi? “What’s wrong?”

 

“Nothing,” Hiro said curtly as he tried to pry Tadashi’s hand away from his shoulder, taking a step back when Tadashi removed his hand. Silence dripped between them before Hiro rolled his eyes and looked at the ground. “You didn’t come and see me for almost three days.” Hiro’s voice was accusing and slightly angered, if anything else was taken account. Tadashi remained still for a moment as Hiro felt the silence threatening him.

 

Why wasn’t Tadashi saying anything?

 

“Oh,” was all Tadashi said for a moment before Hiro snapped his gaze at him. Tadashi rubbed his neck nervously before he sighed, looking at Hiro with a sheepish smile. “Sorry, Hiro. I was busy with my assignments. I was going to see you today, you know—but…”

 

Hiro didn’t need to know what the ‘but’ stood out for. Hiro knew what he was trying to say. The younger Hamada felt a bit put out at that. He understood that Tadashi had assignments and something else than Hiro to be attending to. He didn’t have the liberty to just fool about and have play-dates with Hiro whenever the younger Hamada wanted. Something about that thought didn’t settle well for Hiro. It felt as if Tadashi was saying that Hiro doesn’t matter. It felt as if Tadashi was saying that Hiro wasn’t important—not the first priory at the moment in his life.

 

But Hiro reminded himself that this Tadashi, it wasn’t his Tadashi.

 

So, obviously, he had other things to do. Other better things to do besides entertaining Hiro. That thought caused something bitter to make way into his heart before Hiro sighed dryly. It sounded defeated, as if he knew that this would happen. Hiro knew that this would happen. Tadashi had a life. A life that didn’t circle around sixteen-year-olds with massive trust issues for their dead brother.

 

A life that wasn’t going to be aimed just for him just because Hiro needed the company.

 

So, Hiro needed to accept that and yet, he still felt offended and hurt. Those feelings were still there inside of him. He couldn’t convince himself otherwise. After that night, somehow a thought was created and embedded in Hiro’s mind saying that he was now the most important thing in Tadashi’s life. But time again and again, he forgot that this wasn’t his Tadashi.

 

And now, he was hurt.

 

“ _Oh_ ,” Hiro said quietly as he avoided looking up at Tadashi, his eyes trained on the ground, finding the shiny floor fascinating. Seconds passed before Hiro shook his head a bit. “You know what? I have things to do too. I shouldn’t disturb you. You should just get back to your experiments and I’ll just leave.” Before Hiro could turn around and walk away, he felt a hand gripping tight around his right arm, making him to jolt away from bitter thoughts. When his eyes immediately met the man’s, he was even more startled at how serious they looked. So sharp and not even a trace of playfulness in them with the exception of warmth. Massive amounts of them, just bleeding through those orbs.

 

“ _Don’t_ ,” Tadashi said, despite the seriousness in the words, warmness managed to show. The grip around his arm loosened and suddenly, the hand was barely touching his arm. “Don’t do that.”

 

Hiro blinked at him for a moment or two before confusion mixed into his thoughts. “Don’t do what? Go and do other better things than to stand here and talk to you?” Hiro asked, quite perplexed and annoyed with this situation.   

 

“No,” Tadashi said, a soft frown marking on his handsome face. “No, I mean, don’t go shutting down on me every time you’re upset or scared.”

 

That mere sentence caused everything inside of Hiro to screech into a halt. Staring ahead at this man, he tried to search his face for anything peculiar about this situation. Tadashi sounded as if he had known Hiro since he was young. He knew exactly what to say and what to do. He knew Hiro’s defence methods and suddenly, the younger Hamada felt exposed to him. Like, really exposed, as if by just looking, the man could find out his deepest, darkest secrets. Hiro tried to move back but the light touch around his arm suddenly tightened again, holding him in place.

 

“Hiro,” Tadashi said softly, trying to catch the young genius’s attention again.

 

“You talk as if you know me,” Hiro suddenly said, causing Tadashi to widen his eyes a bit. “You’re telling me not to go ‘shutting down’ on you every time I’m upset or scared. You’re talking as if you’ve known me _all your life_.”

 

Tadashi remained quiet for a while before a soft smile made way on his face. “You’re easy to read, Hiro,” he said with a small chuckle. Hiro just frowned at that, his irritation finally boiling deep inside.

 

“Well, that’s too bad,” Hiro hissed out. “I must be very easy to figure out then until you would rather spend three days away from me to do whatever that’s more important.” Shunned silence deepened between them and for a moment, Hiro didn’t feel guilty. That was when suddenly, he realised what he had said. Clamping his mouth shut, Hiro felt his cheeks reddening and he looked around him in cautiousness. He was thankful that the hallways outside of the labs were deserted, or else, he was sure he was humiliated for good.

 

Tadashi searched Hiro’s face for a moment before he sighed.

 

“Look, uh, I’m sorry,” Hiro said, already feeling really guilty. “I didn’t mean it like that. We just—I just—I….” Hiro tried to search for the right words but at the end, he couldn’t find the words to speak his intentions because that was what he had meant. “I’m sorry.”

 

For now, that was all he could say.

 

“Hiro,” Tadashi slowly said, catching Hiro’s eyes. “I should’ve at least come and seen you these past three days,” he said. “You _are_ important. Call me crazy since we just met, but you are _important_. Nothing else is more important than _you_.”

 

“No, really, you don’t have to lie just because I need some starved affect—”

 

“ _Hiro_ ,” Tadashi’s voice came out sharp as Hiro stopped his babbling. “I’m being serious.”

 

Hiro remained quiet for a moment before he felt the easiness washing over. Once again, this Tadashi had done exactly what his Tadashi would’ve done. He had said all the right things that his Tadashi would’ve said to make Hiro feel relieved for a moment. “Okay,” Hiro said slowly as he smiled, finally his irritation dissipating and his anger no longer evident. Tadashi huffed out in relief before he chuckled, letting Hiro go as he took a step back.

 

“I’ll see you tonight then, alright?” he said as Hiro nodded. “I have to get back to the lab.”

 

“Go and do your thing, Tadashi,” Hiro said softly, as if he had seen some fragments of his Tadashi inside this man. The man hesitated for a moment before he nodded and turned around. But before he could finally walk away, Tadashi turned back around as if he had forgotten something and grabbed onto the back of Hiro’s head. Before Hiro could protest, Tadashi pulled the younger Hamada into a short hug. Hiro’s eyes widened a moment before his eyes grew wide. Suddenly, he felt Tadashi’s—wait, did he just kissed Hiro’s head? After that, Tadashi let him go and smiled. “Forgot to do that.” And with that, he walked away.

 

Hiro watched him go as he slowly touched the top of his head where Tadashi had kissed. His face was red and yet, he didn’t feel any embarrassment. He couldn’t help it when a smile threatened to etch on his face.

 

He remembered when his Tadashi used to do that when he was young. Whenever he got angry at Tadashi or whenever he got upset at something, Tadashi would always hug him and kiss him on the top of the head. It was something that his mother used to do before she died, his Tadashi had told him one day when Hiro had asked why he did that every time he was sad. Somehow, Tadashi had taken over that job.

 

And now, this Tadashi did the same.

 

The nostalgia threatened to cut through him once again as he chuckled wetly.

 

He was definitely so similar to his Tadashi in more ways than one.

 

* * *

 

Hiro and his friends were heading back to his place, to drop him off after the discussion about the mysterious jewellery heist done by some magical blue light that somehow vanished and the explosion that had some invisible barriers around it. It was after the encounter with Tadashi, Hiro had met up with his friends and decided to meet out of the institute to talk about the case and along the way, upgrading their suits and Baymax at Fred’s mansion. It was almost seven by the time they decided to head back home and since Fred owned a car, they decided to drive.

 

Wasabi was in charge of the driving though and Gogo, she wasn’t pleased.

 

She was always in charge of driving but Hiro had literally told them that he wouldn’t upgrade any one of their suits anymore if they let her drive. She had no sense of regulations when it came to driving, especially when it was at night. Ever since the first attack of Callaghan, Hiro was sure he almost died just from her driving alone. Or he thought it was her driving—nope, he was pretty sure, it was her driving. And even though it was nice that once in a while she could drive properly, it still scarred him, so whenever he was in that said ride, he wanted someone like Wasabi to drive.

 

He didn’t need to end up at the hospital with a broken leg or hand because Gogo couldn’t stop her excitement on seeing if this car would reach speed more than two hundred kilometres per hour. And apparently it could, Hiro noted dryly in his head as he leaned his head against the passenger window. Baymax was riding on the roof of the car, since the nurse bot liked it. Hiro also found it cute, having something big and cuddly on the car like some mascot. Fred and Honey agreed with that but Wasabi was wary with it.

 

Wasabi was a very careful driver, someone who would follow the rules so he could stay safe. Taking risks wasn’t something he would do but he had learned to take risky things once in a while since he had become a hero. One sixth of a hero anyway since all of them shared the title. Nobody in the town knew about them under the masks and even if they did, Hiro was sure they would’ve forgotten about them since Big Hero 6 went missing for almost two years with no activity.

 

Sighing, the whole ride was silent, nothing much said, occasionally Gogo giving irritated glances at Wasabi who was driving only below one-hundred kilometres per hour. As they stopped at the familiar junction for the traffic light, Hiro saw the bank a few blocks away. Hiro just stared at it for a while before something unexpected happened.

 

_Boom!_

 

The whole place shook as Hiro eyes widened at the scene. He saw the bank being blown up and suddenly he was eye-to-eye at the radius of the explosion. Almost immediately he saw an invisible barrier causing the explosion to be compressed into a huge sphere before it disappeared, leaving fire behind. And coming out from the huge fire-clouded hole was a neon-electric blue sizzling light.

 

“ _What_ was _that_?” Wasabi screeched but Hiro didn’t waste any time as he unfastened his seatbelt and opened the door and got out. The rest of the team took the cue and exited the car.

 

“The blue light!” Hiro exclaimed as he kept his eyes on the neon-electric light moving limb by limb out and away from the hole. Just then, Hiro noticed that the neon-blue actually covered someone. That someone was the one carrying the bag of money. The person was dressed in complete black and that was why he thought he saw that there was only neon-electric blue suspending in mid-air. “Let’s suit up. We need to get him before he gets far!”

 

“Yeah!” Fred exclaimed excitedly as they did what they were told, Baymax already down from the roof top of the car.

 

“Baymax, suit up,” Gogo demanded as Baymax wobbled to them to do so. Since the beginning, Hiro had adjusted a lot of their features and one of them was their wrist bands, already helping them to suit up whenever they wanted to. It was all techs nowadays so they wouldn’t waste time trying to wear the clothes. Baymax was programmed into it and before they knew it, Baymax was in his armour and everyone else ready to catch him. Hiro, however, was the only one who needless to say, hasn’t gotten the chance to upgrade his.

 

He had to do it the old fashioned way but for now, he didn’t think he could.

 

The black man with that pulsing electric blue light around his body began to disappear, like a shuttering image. Hiro felt panic rushing into him and before he knew it, he had run off, trying to stop the man. Before the thief could disappear, Hiro had taken off his shoe and threw it at him. Since the explosion had disappeared, the barrier already disappeared and thus the shoe ended up hitting the thief.

 

Hiro immediately froze when he realised that he was too close with the scene where the thief was. Then, he saw it. The cold stare from the thief was so familiar that Hiro felt himself mesmerised. Hiro managed to get a closer look at that neon light around him as well. _It was electricity_ , Hiro noted. “Stop and surrender,” Hiro said as the person completely turned to Hiro.

 

“Hiro!” he heard Wasabi yelling at him as Hiro felt his eyes widened when the person reached out and took out what seemed like a sharp object. It was deadly looking and it was definitely edgy, almost like a ninja shuriken, only to have some light purple glowing electricity around the ends, vibrating and hissing loudly.

 

Before Hiro could react, the sharp object was thrown at him. He was rooted to the spot as he saw that thing hurling right at him. Why wasn’t he moving? Hiro closed his eyes sharply when suddenly he felt a huge impact at the right rib pushing him down and flat on the ground, the weapon missing them by mere inches.

 

Gogo immediately speed up and tried to stop the person from leaving meanwhile Fred tried to get some angle to shoot the person. The person was quick though. The thief dropped the money and took a few steps back, avoiding the attacks and took out handful of those things. He started to fire at them, trying to take them all down. The shurikens sliced through the walls and shops after missing them.

 

Thank god all the passer-by had fled the scene by now, leaving the road deserted. Honey Lemon tried to immobilise the thief by throwing some of those chemical-induced balls and hit around the leg, making the thief stuck to the ground. With a low snarl, the thief suddenly flexed his right hand out and a sharp electric-induced knife came out, slashing Honey’s restrain.

 

Meanwhile, Hiro’s head was pounding as he slowly opened his eyes. “You alright?” a voice demanded as he felt hands touching his face. Hiro slowly tried to sit up before he looked who it was that was looking at him with that worried face. Seconds ticked on before the face clicked in his mind and Hiro’s eyes widened. Quickly grabbing onto the man’s shoulder, he shook him slightly.

 

“ _What_ are you doing _here_?” Hiro demanded as Tadashi stared at Hiro.

 

“What are _you_ doing _here_?” Tadashi asked back.

 

“No, go away, Tadashi,” Hiro yelled as he got up, looking around to see where the thief had gone. Hiro was sure that something about the thief was awfully familiar. He just didn’t have enough time to figure what that was.

 

“You’re injured, stupid,” Tadashi said, somehow frustration making way in his words. True to his words, Hiro did scrape his elbows but that was least of his worries.

 

“Baymax! Let’s get him,” Hiro had yelled out to Baymax who had run towards Hiro. The younger Hamada then looked back at Tadashi and shot him a glare.

 

“Stay there, or even better, _get away from here_!” 

 

Before Tadashi could even protest, Hiro had dashed into the scene with Baymax next to him. He looked around the crime scene for a while before he spotted some fallen weapons. The shuriken had long lost the electric sizzling ends and was just now a plain object with blunt ends. Looked like the electricity was giving it the sharp edge to it and without the power, it was merely too blunt to do anything.

 

Picking one of it up and shoving it down his pants, he looked at the thief and asked Baymax to aim his hand on him. Baymax didn’t waste his time to shoot his right hand, at high speed, aiming for the thief. The thief however, noticed it and jumped away, causing Wasabi to get hit instead.

 

Before Hiro could react for the second time, the thief had gotten a good aim at him. Suddenly raising his hand, he threw the weapon with a sizzling hiss at Hiro. However, before Baymax could react, Hiro was suddenly dragged down to the floor once again, shielded by a huge, bigger body than his. “ _Tadashi_!” Hiro yelled out, causing everything around them so slow down for a second and Hiro found himself closing his eyes tight, not wanting to know what will happen.

 

But after a while, he found out that there weren’t any cries of pain or grunts of displeasure. Instead, Baymax had managed to stand in front of them after that in a speed of light and blocked the weapon. Before Honey could react to the thief, the thief had taken this time to press a button around his wrist and the bright blue light sizzled even brighter before he began to disappear in a flash, leaving nothing around him but the weapons.

 

A huge threatening silence took over as Hiro slowly opened his eyes, meeting with the brown ones. At first, he felt nothing but relief. Relief that Tadashi was alright, that he was alright, that Tadashi didn’t seem to have gotten hit by anything. And then, anger, immense anger took over before Hiro pushed Tadashi off him and glared. “What the _hell_ is wrong with you?” Hiro yelled out loud as Tadashi frowned at him and sat down.

 

“You almost got yourself _killed_ , that’s what!” Tadashi hissed out as Hiro gritted his teeth.

 

“I have Baymax to protect me, so I wasn’t going to get killed. You, on the other hand, will be if you keep on doing _that_!” Hiro stood up and glared heatedly at the man. Why did Tadashi do that? Suddenly, the flashes of his Tadashi’s death went through his mind as Hiro couldn’t help but to feel wet around his eyes. He didn’t need to lose another one of him. He didn’t want anything to happen to Tadashi.

 

Wasn’t it enough that he had to witness his brother dying? Why must this Tadashi get into these situations too? It was relief mixed with anger and Hiro didn’t even stop to think for a moment about all of these. They just ended up glaring at each other for a moment, both angry at each other.

 

“Hiro,” Baymax started before he turned around, his missing hand finally joined back. Hiro looked away from Tadashi before eyeing on Baymax. “Are you injured?”

 

“I’m fine,” Hiro said curtly before he felt a tight hug around his neck.

 

“Thank god, you’re okay!” Honey Lemon said before his friends gathered around him.

 

“You could’ve gotten injured!” Wasabi exclaimed, somehow, he clutching his stomach. “And Baymax’s punch is really strong.”

 

“We have to get you checked,” Hiro said as he watched Wasabi flinching in pain.

 

“My mansion, let’s go to my mansion,” Fred announced as all of them nodded. But before any of them could move away from the scene, Fred had noticed Tadashi, his eyes growing wide for a moment before he said, “But dudes, I think I’m seeing Tadashi there.”

 

Hiro froze for a moment, completely forgetting about his anger when his eyes darted back at the man, who now stood up, his arms slightly grazed and red. Everyone else fell silent as Tadashi noticed the stares. Looking at them, he saw Tadashi going rigid and his eyes widened.

 

“ _What_ —” Gogo began as she took a step forward.

 

“Is that?” Honey Lemon began.

 

“Looks like I’m not seeing things then,” Fred added as Wasabi blinked at him.

 

“What the…how? Why is a dead man alive and breathing and standing right in front of us?” he screeched out as Hiro felt the dread washing in him. Tadashi on the other hand looked like someone had caught him eating a jar full of candies. Tadashi didn’t know how to react.

 

“Uh, _yeah_ ,” Hiro said softly as the team quickly looked back at the younger Hamada. Sighing, Hiro walked towards Tadashi to stand next to him, quickly noticing the injuries. He reminded himself to help him clean that wound once they were in Fred’s mansion. “This is Tadashi. Tadashi _Takachiho_.”

 

Silence once again immersed them deeply, nobody moving and nobody saying anything. Even Tadashi didn’t know what to say.

 

“So, this is Tadashi’s clone?” Fred asked as Hiro shuffled from one foot to the other.

 

Here was where things were going to get complicated. He could just feel it. Glancing at Tadashi, he just sighed. He could be angry at him later, for now, he needed to clear up this confusion and solve this mystery. They also needed to get away from the crime scene fast. He could already hear the sirens from the police cars wailing just a few blocks from here. The fire in the store had long past gone dead and down.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, here you guys go~! Chapter 5! To be honest, here comes one of my 'I don't think I did well' rants. Harhar. I think the fighting scene seemed off. Agh, I don't do action well but I love action! So, anyways, hope you guys liked this chappie~ I'm so glad and overwhelmed with the awesome responses. So, do continue to support me as it gives me more inspiration and dedication to update fast! :DD Do comment by the end of this chappie so I know what you guys think of this chapter. Until the next chappie, see you~! -Krystal


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Eh, nope~ Not mine. 
> 
> Everywhere that I go, I see another memory, And all the places we used to know, They’re always there to haunt me – Sleepwalker (Adam Lambert)

 

 

They were lucky enough that they managed to get into the car and get away from the scene before the police arrived. A quick check around the place and Gogo confirmed that there wasn’t any eye witness that could confirm that they were there. The street cameras were also damaged again from the explosion. There was no evidence that Big Hero 6 was on the scene. Hiro couldn’t blame them for that there wasn’t any eye witness since the thief almost had the team cut up into pieces. Imagine what the thief could’ve done to the civilians if they had stayed and watched.

 

Silence lingered on the entire ride back to Fred’s mansion, his friends occasionally glancing at Tadashi as if they wanted to make sure he wouldn’t disappear into thin air. They were scared that if they looked away for longer than a minute and looked back at him, Tadashi would disappear, evaporated into nowhere. They didn’t think they were sane at the moment, to see a dead-man alive and sitting in the car.

 

However, the younger Hamada didn’t care what they did to this man now, what bothered him at the moment was the thief.

 

That electric-neon around his body, pulsing through like some web, it made the thief look so dangerous. It looked familiar too and Hiro couldn’t just get his finger on it. He could distinctively remember anything if he could but for now, somehow, that particular image didn’t click in his mind. The colour was familiar and the weapons, those weapons that sliced through the air with a hiss, they had electric edges, making them deadlier and sharper than any weapons. Even so, without some help of focusing feature, electricity could not be concentrated enough to be a weapon, so, that would mean the weapon the thief had used must have some focusing feature inside.

 

Just then, a shuddering memory pulled into his view when he realised how close this Tadashi had gotten into getting hurt. That weapon if made contact with Tadashi, would have sliced him without mercy. Just the image of Tadashi, lying on the ground, bloodied from his cuts and his clothes all soaked in redness made Hiro’s heart tremble in fear. The mere thought of it made Hiro scared.

 

Anger also once again started to bubble inside the younger Hamada. The same anger he had felt after a few days of his Tadashi’s death. The anger of the thought that his Tadashi dared to leave him behind to save someone that was somehow less important than him. And now, this Tadashi had done the same offence and Hiro just hated that. Right now, he wanted nothing more to just punch the man in the face, just to satisfy himself, just to get the message across that he was pissed off.

 

To jump out of nowhere into the scene to save Hiro wasn’t something heroic in the Hamada’s part, instead, it was the stupidest thing Hiro had witnessed anyone doing.  Just then, a thought occurred into his mind, something he hadn’t realised until he was much more calmed down.

 

 _Where_ in the world did Tadashi _come from_?

 

That thought caused Hiro to sit up straighter, his eyebrows furrowing and his lips tugging into a frown. It seemed to be as if Tadashi knew that Hiro would be at the fight scene. It wasn’t as if Tadashi didn’t know that Hiro was in Big Hero 6, but what bothered him was how in the world did Tadashi know the crime was happening then? Glancing back at Tadashi, he was sitting beside Fred and trying his best to look passive. Hiro knew that the man was anything but passive. If he could make anything out of the way Tadashi had looked when he realised his friends had seen him, it was anything but calm.

 

And he shouldn’t be either because right now, at this moment, Hiro had so many questions and so many things to accuse this man of and Tadashi better be prepared for it.

 

* * *

 

 

Everyone sprawled around Fred’s room, just staring at Tadashi who was fidgeting in his seat as if he was under some observation. Wasabi was currently placing a bag of ice on his stomach as he continued with the staring match with the man. Silence, thickening silence, lingered between them as Hiro crossed his arms against his chest. His lips were thinned and he was sure, anybody who was looking at him would know that he was displeased. Tadashi sighed under his breath before he looked at Hiro, his brown eyes caught the younger Hamada’s only to be looked away.

 

Hiro clenched his jaw before he straightened himself.

 

His anger and irritation as well as confusion had mixed and mashed inside the genius for a while now ever since he had realised of the question. Waiting for this man in front of him to open up wasn’t going to happen anytime soon and Hiro was done waiting. He wasn’t very patient right at the moment and truthfully, he never was. Waiting wasn’t his forte and he didn’t think he would start to change it up now.

 

He needed answers.

 

And he was going to get them, even if it meant choking Tadashi to get him to speak.

 

Hiro was gone beyond pity and sadness. What lied in the Hamada was pure need for answers.

 

“Well, before anyone starts questioning,” the younger Hamada said, his voice tight and sharp. “I just need to know something. _Tadashi_ ,” Hiro began before continuing with his voice getting sharper and sharper at each word, “Where the _hell_ did you _come_ from?”

 

Tadashi immediately looked back at Hiro before he blinked. “ _What_?”

 

“You know exactly _what_!” Hiro exclaimed as he dropped his hands to his sides. Hiro was feeling the anger growing inside of him as the man in front of him furrowed his eyebrows a bit. After a few seconds, Tadashi’s eyes narrowed slightly at Hiro before he thinned his lips, a frown tugging at the corners. Silence lingered on before he leaned into his chair and looked away from Hiro.

 

“I _live_ around there,” he said, barely above a whisper. Hiro raised an eyebrow a moment before he shook his head. The younger Hamada couldn’t really add up the sense of his answers. It sounded like a bag of lies right now and Hiro had never been so angry before in his life at someone, except at Callaghan. The anger for Callaghan was purely murderous. If he had a chance to murder Callaghan, he would jump at the chance just for the sake of getting back for his brother’s death. But even so, the younger Hamada didn’t think he would do it. He was raised better than that. His brother, he wouldn’t want that either.

 

“You _live_ around _there_?” he asked, his voice accusing and unbelievable. Tadashi quickly snapped his eyes to the younger Hamada and nodded curtly, his eyes narrowing again until they began a silent glare. Hiro stared back, not flinching from the sudden dramatic change of the atmosphere. “You’re serious?” Hiro bit out, still not finding the reason believable.

 

Tadashi examined the question for a while before he frowned. “You think I’m _lying_?” Tadashi asked, his voice sounding slightly disappointed. Silence lingered between them before Tadashi’s glare deepened into something more emotional when he realised that Hiro wasn’t defending an answer out. Hiro didn’t want to either, he wasn’t going to just bend over and agree just because Tadashi said so. He wasn’t that gullible and for Tadashi to be at the scene at the right moment the crime happened definitely made Hiro slightly uncomfortable. “I’m _not_ lying, Hiro!”

 

“You’re not?” Hiro said, his voice sharp. “Then how the hell—how did you ended up around there?”

 

“I was walking to your place, that’s _what_! And I can’t just turn around and walk away when I see you going into a battlefield without protection,” Tadashi yelled, his voice no longer holding in. Frustration was seeping in each word before moulded around with a pinch of disappointment. Hiro took a sudden step back from the loudness before his lips shaped into a sneer. Something inside the Hamada didn’t like being yelled at. He also hated that Tadashi was right somehow, even though he was angry at him. It didn’t give Tadashi any reason, not even Hiro’s own safety, for Tadashi to risk his life! He didn’t want to attend—attend another _funeral_ with him in the coffin!

 

 “I don’t need you to jump in like a hero and die, Tadashi!” Hiro yelled back, thickening silence following right after. “I have Baymax, I’m fine! Alright, you’re walking to my house—how is it you’re around there when the whole road was cleared off from people after the explosion?”

 

“You’re _still_ doubting me?” Tadashi asked, slowly standing up. Hiro noticed that Tadashi’s shoulders were tensed up and Hiro felt guilty for a moment. But he needed to know and if it meant breaking Tadashi’s barriers down a bit to get the answers, he would gladly do so. Somehow, deep inside of Hiro, the young genius hoped that yes, Tadashi did live around there. “Hiro, I told you, I was on my way to see you when the explosion happened and then when I saw you running at him—I can’t help it, alright? I need you to be safe!”

 

Silence took over for a while as Hiro searched Tadashi’s face. He hoped that it was the truth. He needed it to be the truth. But that didn’t cloud his judgement as he kept on searching the man’s face for any traces of life. After a few ticking seconds, Hiro found out that he indeed wasn’t lying. Hiro felt a huge wash of relief washing into him before anger took back control when he realised what Tadashi had did at the scene.

 

“I am! It’s you who wasn’t and you could’ve _died_ ,” Hiro exclaimed, sounding frustrated. “I—I can’t let you…” But the words never finished themselves as the younger Hamada felt conflicting emotions in himself, almost drowning him from within. This wasn’t how things were supposed to be. Tadashi shouldn’t be so selfless, not this time. Hiro couldn’t handle losing someone all over again. Nobody could get used to the feeling of losing someone dear to them, no matter how many times they did. It wasn’t something anybody could ever remember feeling either. That feeling, when you found out that the person you loved had died, was something sickening. It would leave a huge gaping void inside of you. It would carve you out at each passing minute you remember of the person until one day, you realise, your heart’s hollow.

 

Tadashi’s glare softened before he sighed. He rubbed the bridge of his nose for a moment before he relaxed a bit. Hiro couldn’t help it when he felt the immense fear of losing someone threatening to take over once again, causing his eyes to become wet.

 

“Hiro,” the man started before he took a step forward to Hiro, his eyes finally holding that warmth again. “I’m not leaving any time soon.”

 

“You _will_ ,” Hiro suddenly hissed out, causing Tadashi to flinch slightly. “You would’ve. You could have just now. If that—that weapon hit you, you could have left me. You—Why are you both so _annoying_?” Hiro raised his voice at each word, hitting his peak of frustration. He completely had forgotten about his friends but he knew that they were staring at them, not trying to come in between them just for the sake of it.

 

“I—I’m sorry,” he said. “I’m sorry to have, caused you….this but I’m not going to apologise for what I did,” Tadashi said firmly, his apologetic voice slowly shaping into seriousness. Hiro couldn’t help but to want to hit him across the head, didn’t matter if right now they had an audience. “I had my reasons and I acted on them. I won’t apologise for what I did no matter what.”

 

How could he say that? Hiro didn’t know what to think for a moment as the anger consumed him all the way through.

 

“I _hate_ you,” Hiro said, his tears already threatening to fall. He didn't really hate him. How could he? He was just so angry that those words were the only ones that could portray how he felt. Stunned silence filled into the room before Tadashi chuckled dryly, sounding broken. Tadashi didn't look offended or hurt, in fact, he looked at Hiro as if he understood what Hiro had really meant. 

 

“Even if you hate me by the end of the day,” Tadashi said before pausing for a moment. “I would and still will do anything to protect you.”

 

“Why?” Hiro asked finally, his eyes searching into Tadashi’s face. “Why—”

 

“You’re _important_ to me.”

 

Silence took over for a while before Hiro looked away, quickly wiping his eyes. Hiro remembered what Tadashi had said to him this noon. He remembered the look of sincerity on Tadashi’s face. Tadashi just looked at the younger Hamada for a moment before looking away as well. Hiro shuffled on his feet a bit before he decided that he needed to talk about this later. He couldn’t handle this right now, and so, he sighed and shook his head slightly. The atmosphere, the thick atmosphere slowly disappeared before Hiro shook his head and looked at his friends. His eyes widened a bit when he realised that all of them were staring at what had happened. Gogo seemed speechless meanwhile Wasabi’s mouth was wide open. Hiro felt nervous before he rubbed the back of his neck. Glancing at Tadashi to see how he was reacting, his eyes immediately caught onto the scrapped arms

 

 “Baymax?” Hiro called out.

 

“Hiro,” Baymax trotted next to Hiro.

 

“Scan Tadashi for any more injuries,” Hiro ordered but Tadashi immediately looked back at Baymax and then Hiro. Before Baymax could do anything, Tadashi took a step back.

 

“Baymax, _stop_ ,” he ordered, causing Baymax to look at Tadashi quietly before stepping back. Hiro raised an eyebrow before looking at Tadashi.

 

“You’re ordering him around now?” Hiro asked, his anger finally sliding off. “Baymax, check him.”

 

“ _No_ ,” Tadashi looked at Baymax and fixed him a look. Baymax looked at Hiro before looking at Tadashi.

 

“Yes, Baymax,” Hiro gritted out, frowning at why Tadashi was refusing this. “Tadashi, you’re hurt.”

 

“I’m fine,” Tadashi said. “Baymax, stop.”

 

“Tadashi!” Hiro exclaimed. “Stop being stubborn!”

 

“I’m not! I’m fine, really!”

 

“You hurt your arms, Tadashi,” Hiro said frustrated only for Tadashi to sigh loudly.

 

“I’m fine. I could just apply ointment or something and it’ll be fine,” he said, trying to convince Hiro. “I’m a Biomed student, Hiro. I know medicine.”

 

Hiro remained quiet for a while as he examined Tadashi. Something about the way Tadashi was refusing the help didn’t settle well for Hiro. The thoughts scrambled in his head for a while before Hiro deleted them. He would analyse them later since Tadashi did have a valid point as well. He was a student accustomed to medicine even if it wasn’t that deep like doctors study for. Tadashi would know if he was hurt anywhere else. For a while, he didn’t say anything else before he sighed. “Fine. Are you sure though?”

 

“Yes,” Tadashi said, sighing a bit. And that was when Fred’s butler came in, carrying the first aid box. Fred quickly retrieved it from the man and waved his butler away before he looked at them.

 

“I got the aid,” Fred said carefully only for Tadashi to slowly look back at Hiro’s friends. Tadashi’s eyes widened a bit before Hiro saw his cheeks tinting in pink, maybe due to embarrassment and nervousness.

 

“Right, _questions_ ,” Tadashi said slowly before he chuckled once, sounding less thrilled. Inside, Hiro felt the dread washing into him once more. He knew what his friends were going to ask, all the questions that he had asked when he first met Tadashi. They would be refusing the reality as well, that there was someone else looking exactly like Tadashi in front of them. And then, they would proceed to think they were in a dream. All of those stages that Hiro had been in before, he was sure his friends would be going through as well. It was going to be confusing and it was going to take some time for them to get used of him, but when they do, they would realise that this Tadashi was somehow like their Tadashi.

 

“Yeah,” Wasabi said, his eyebrows furrowed.

 

“You look exactly like— _him_ ,” Honey Lemon said, her eyes staring deep into Tadashi’s for a moment. “You even have the same name.”

 

“Yeah,” Tadashi said uncomfortably before he sat back down on his chair, letting the questions to start. Hiro stood behind from the interrogation, just making sure Tadashi wasn’t going to be overwhelmed by this. “I—I…don’t know what to say, honestly,” Tadashi said, chuckling once again before he went quiet. His eyes were clearly showing discomfort but his friends ignored it.

 

“How was it that you knew Hiro and yet—”

 

“I met Hiro at the café,” Tadashi said quietly, answering Gogo’s unasked question. Hiro bit his bottom lip for a moment before he noticed Gogo glancing at him, showing that she had certain questions for the younger Hamada as well. Hiro shuffled from one foot to the other before stilling himself so he would be quiet.

 

“So, you’re not, like a clone?” Fred asked as the rest of the team gave him a look before he shrugged. “Hey, could be possible, man.”

 

“No,” Tadashi said, unsure of what to do with that question but he just cracked a smile anyway. His demeanour didn’t change and it was still tense, but the smile assured them that they were free to ask any questions. “I’m not a clone.”

 

“You’re a person, then?” Wasabi asked only for Hiro to roll his eyes at them.

 

“Yes,” Tadashi said seriously.

 

“You’re not Tadashi _Hamada_ , then?” Honey Lemon asked as Tadashi looked at her. Something flashed in those brown eyes, Hiro noticed, but before he could really take a look, the look vanished and Tadashi nodded.

 

“No,” he said. “I’m Tadashi _Takachiho_. I’m not—I’m not him,” Tadashi said quietly, his eyes finally leaving Honey Lemon’s. Silence ventured a bit between them before Gogo looked at Hiro.

 

“And you’re fine with this?” she asked, pointing at Hiro. Hiro looked at her and bit his bottom lip again, nervousness making way through his system.

 

“Yeah, well—not at first, but…I’m fine now, I guess,” Hiro said, shrugging carelessly only to get weird looks from his team. Tadashi, however, simply smiled a bit before he sighed, his shoulders shagging harshly as if he was drowned out of energy. Hiro stared at Tadashi a while before looking back at his friends.

 

“So, what now?” Wasabi asked finally, as they went back locking their gazes at Tadashi.

 

“What do you mean?” Hiro asked, his eyes narrowing.

 

“I mean,” Wasabi said as he sighed. “Man, I’m so not in the condition to deal with this.”

 

“What Wasabi’s trying to say is,” Gogo said, cutting him off. “How should we proceed from here? It’s—It’s really weird, Hiro. You met him before and maybe you’re used to him, but we just met him. He—”

 

“He really looks like him, Hiro,” Honey Lemon continued for Gogo for a moment before Hiro saw the looks on their faces. He knew what they were feeling. They were scared, they were scared that this could be some wicked dream before they wake up and realise that Tadashi really was dead and there was no one who looked or acted like him. Hiro, he had those fears and he still did, sometimes hoping that if this was a dream, he didn’t want to wake up. If he could, he wanted this to continue. Silence ventured deep and Tadashi didn’t do anything to say or let them know of what he thought. He was quiet, as if he was waiting for some kind of judgement.

 

Hiro sighed slowly before he nodded. “Guys, I know, it’s scary,” he said slowly before he looked at Tadashi. “But, we should look things from—a different angle, shouldn’t we?” He could sense something was changing in Tadashi after the words were out but he wasn’t sure what. All he could do was hope that his friends were accepting, even though it was hard. Silence once again engrossed them before Gogo shook her head. Honey Lemon glanced at her before she looked at Tadashi.

 

“Well,” she said softly. “I _guess_ it’s okay.”

 

Wasabi remained quiet for a while before he too nodded. “Yeah.”

 

“So, yeah, I’m alright too,” Fred raised a hand and said, even though he was trying to hide his fear behind that goofy smile of his. Gogo was the only one quiet before she sighed out loud and looked at Tadashi before she eyed Hiro.

 

“Okay,” she said quietly. “ _Okay_.”

 

Tadashi just smiled a bit wider before he leaned into his chair, his tense shoulders finally relaxed. Hiro remained quiet for a minute or two, waiting for anyone else to ask something else about Tadashi before he looked at Wasabi. Wasabi was still flinching a bit under the pain. “You gotta check your stomach for any more injuries, Wasabi. Baymax?”

 

“I had already done a scan on him. He sustains no more injuries besides the blue-black on his stomach. He also does not have any internal bleedings or injuries,” Baymax concluded his scanning as Wasabi grinned out. With that Hiro nodded and looked back at Tadashi.

 

“Let’s get you cleaned up too,” Hiro said, catching Tadashi off guard. The man looked at Hiro for a while before he smiled and chuckled.

 

“You’re going to tend to me?” he asked, somehow playfulness escaped his tones causing the younger Hamada to crack a smile. The tense atmosphere disappeared once again.

 

“I’m not a doctor but when you had a brother who’s fascinated with medicine as well, you learn a thing or two,” the young genius said, even though his voice held the melancholy. Gogo seemed to follow Hiro’s movements for a while as he quickly took the first aid from Fred and took a seat next to Tadashi. Opening it up, he grabbed the antiseptic cream. Looking at Tadashi’s arms, he slowly reached his right arm and dragged it gently to his lap. Tadashi stared at him quietly, his warm eyes softening and warmth flooded them as Hiro concentrated to treat the wounds.

 

Meanwhile, Gogo silently witnessed the scene before she looked away and went to sit down on the couch located inside Fred’s room. “So, the thief,” Wasabi said, changing the subject even though they knew that this weirdness was going to take some time to get used to. Fred lingered around before he sat next to Gogo.

 

“He seemed really scary,” Fred said. “But he looks cool at the same time. With those blue lights. Electric?” Fred continued as he mused on. Hiro looked up from Tadashi’s arm, and looked at his friends.

 

“Yeah,” Hiro said out loud before he went back to tending to Tadashi’s right arm. He made sure to gently dab the wound first before he slowly applied the cream at the edge of his fingertips. Looking up at Tadashi’s eyes, he felt himself growing pinkish around his cheeks when he realised Tadashi was staring at him. “Stop staring,” Hiro said as he heard the man chuckling. Rolling his eyes, he dabbed the cream gently on his wound, eliciting some hisses of pain from the man.

 

“That stings,” Tadashi commented as Hiro chuckled this time. “Oh, you find this funny?” he asked, somehow sounding amused. Hiro looked at Tadashi a bit before he shook his head and went back to dabbing the wound with the cream, even though he tried to hide his amusement by biting his bottom lip. “You do, don’t you?”

 

“No,” Hiro said even though he let a smile to stretch on his lips. Finished with that, he straightened himself as he took Tadashi’s left arm. Looking at the wound, Hiro felt the sharp pang of pain going through him when he realised how Tadashi got these wounds, his smile faltered. Gently dabbing the wound with one of the cotton wools, he felt the loneliness threatening to take over. He couldn’t lose someone again, not this time. He didn’t like it when someone got hurt because of him, whether it was because he, himself had hurt them or because they were trying to protect him. All his life, people were trying to shield him away from the pain and loneliness, only for them to fail every time because at the end—they _died_ and left Hiro behind.

 

Suddenly, his grip around Tadashi’s left wrist tightened and a dry lump formed at his throat. He couldn’t let this man go around trying to protect him. Tadashi noticed Hiro had halted his dabbing and the free hand around his wrist tightened. That extra pressure alerted Tadashi about Hiro’s face. That smile was gone and now, it was replaced with a small frown. Eyes glazed, Hiro felt the want to hug Tadashi began to worm up in his heart again. “Hiro?” Tadashi asked slowly only for Hiro to jolt awake from his day dream.

 

Quickly continuing with the dabbing, he proceeded with the cream, not acknowledging Tadashi. The man examined the boy in front of him before a frown tugged his lips. “Hiro, you’re shutting down again.”

 

“I can’t do this anymore,” Hiro suddenly began, quietly so his friends wouldn’t hear him. Tadashi, who was close enough to hear, looked at him confused. “I _can’t_ do this again, Tadashi.”

 

“Hiro, what are you talking about?” the man asked, something etching worry made way in his tone. Hiro sighed shakily before he touched Tadashi’s hand. He slowly traced the palm, his eyes glazing deeper and brimming with tears.

 

“I can’t live on every time someone important to me dies,” Hiro said, his voice edgy and disappointed. Tadashi felt himself going stiff for a moment. “If you were in my shoes, you would know this feeling, this feeling that tries to tell you that every time you get close to someone, that person will die and you’ll be alone all over again. I can’t do this anymore if I—if I have to watch you die too.”

 

“Are we still on about that, Hiro?” Tadashi asked, his voice barely a whisper. This time, instead of anger, it was shielded with pure rawness. Hiro flinched at the tone of pure desperation but he kept his mouth close, feeling some of the tears escaping his eyes. “Hiro,” Tadashi began before he clasped Hiro’s hand, intertwining their fingers so Hiro would feel him. “I _won’t_ leave you.”

 

“You can’t—you can’t say that because you don’t know if that’s true,” Hiro said, trying to keep quiet. His fingers intertwined with Tadashi’s had felt really warm and even though they were shaking slightly, he could feel every ounce of warmth that this man was trying to give. Somehow, he couldn’t push away the thought about how their fingers had fit together. It went well, like some puzzle. It felt different and Hiro couldn’t break down this feeling that overwhelmed him. He felt another hand slowly caressing his cheek before it forced him to look at those warm brown eyes. Hiro’s eyes widened a bit when he felt a thumb wiping away his tears before Tadashi smiled.

 

“Don’t be scared, okay?” he said as he smiled. “I’m here and I’ll always be here for you. I won’t leave you, even if one day you get tired of me.”

 

Hiro didn’t know what to say for a while as he looked away. “I—”

 

“Please, don’t be scared anymore,” Tadashi said as Hiro sighed softly and finally smiled, his tears stopping. “I’ll be with you forever.”

 

“Is that a promise?” Hiro asked, his voice soft and Tadashi smiled wider.

 

“Yeah,” he said, sounding sincere and serious. The fear slowly dissipated again even though Hiro knew that this conversation was far from over. Silence between them lingered on before Hiro nodded and sighed, leaning away from the touch and letting their fingers go. Somehow, he found himself disappointed that he couldn’t feel the warmth anymore but he couldn’t do things like these with someone who looked like his brother. It felt great and Hiro would treasure the feeling forever but he doubted that it something both boys could do every single time. Hiro placed the cream back into the first aid box and closed it.

 

“Okay, uhm, I’ll just get cleaned up,” Hiro said as he looked at his own elbows which were grazed slightly. It wasn’t as terrible as Tadashi’s, so he didn’t really needed any cream. Tadashi just raised an eyebrow when he pointedly looked at the wound.

 

“Uh-huh,” the man said as Hiro glanced at him and rolled his eyes.

 

“I’m fine,” he said before he got up. “I’ll just throw these away,” Hiro said as he picked up the bloodied cotton wools and proceeded to head to the trash can. Throwing it away, he decided it was time he put his head back into the game. His friends didn’t really realise what had happened with the younger Hamada, all too busy trying to think who their possible culprit could be.

 

“It doesn’t add up though because he disappeared right in front of us!” Wasabi exclaimed, his eyes mixed with confusion and agitation. Hiro just joined them as he plopped next to Gogo. Just then, Hiro remembered that he had shoved down the blunted shuriken into his pants before he started to fight the thief. Quickly standing up and fishing the weapon out, he raised it slightly to catch the attention of his teammates.

 

“I found this,” he said. “Well, not really. It’s on the ground with the other weapons. When this thing was hurling right at me, it was actually electric-wired at the edges so it’s sharp. But when it died down, it became blunt.”

 

Honey Lemon immediately took it and examined it a bit. “It does seem blunt without the electricity,” she said before she handed to Gogo, who was extending her hand out. Gogo looked at it for a while before she frowned.

 

“If given perfect amount of voltage and focus, electricity can be a weapon. But lasers are usually better for cutting things,” Gogo said as Hiro nodded.

 

“ _Exactly_ ,” he said. “But this—the suit the thief was wearing, it was electric. I know it.”

 

“How can you be sure, though?” Tadashi finally asked, catching the team’s attention. Tadashi felt the attention on him for a minute before he felt his cheeks tinting in pink. “Sorry,” he said as he raised both of his hands in the air, assuming surrender. Hiro just furrowed his eyebrows a bit before he nodded at Tadashi’s words.

 

“The man has a point, though,” Fred said slowly. “How can you be sure that it was just electricity?”

 

“What else could it be? It was—like strings on him,” Hiro said. “Like a web on him and he could control them too.”

 

“This is confusing,” Wasabi said as Hiro nodded. Hiro was sure, he had seen those patterns from somewhere.

 

“And, the disappearing act,” Tadashi slowly added. “It’s like he was being transported. I mean, it isn’t impossible since we’re trying to mobilise atoms from one point to another point but so far, we’re unsuccessful.”

 

“Unless, he already mastered it?” Honey Lemon suggested. “It could be possible.”

 

“It could,” Gogo mused a bit before she messed up her bangs. “But—”

 

“But we need to analyse this theory first,” Hiro continued for her. “This theory about electricity and this,” Hiro said as he pointed at the weapon. “We need to try and re-create this.”

 

* * *

 

 

After a while, the discussion had turned to a dead end. No other leads were created as Hiro finally remembered that he hadn’t called Cass yet. To say the least, she wasn’t pleased that Hiro hadn’t called in advance. The younger Hamada decided to keep the encounter with the thief out of the story, for the sake he doesn’t worry his aunt. Cass made him promise that he actually eats something for dinner instead of bags of chips and doesn’t stay up late night. Hiro, had reluctantly agreed, but agreed neither the less so he could finish his thinking.

 

By the end of it all, he ended up finding himself outside of Fred’s mansion, around the porch, looking at the night sky and just staring at it. Gogo had followed him out for a moment before she leaned against one of the pillars, looking at the sky too. The stars twinkled brightly a bit before she sighed. Hiro glanced at her before he smiled. “Tiring, huh?”

 

“The thief is definitely going to get a taste of my disks the next time I catch him,” Gogo grumbled under her breath as he grinned at that.

 

“I bet he wouldn’t forget about it,” Hiro offered helpfully only to receive an irritated glare from Gogo. Chuckling, he looked away from her and to the surrounding. Silence endured between them before Gogo opened her mouth to speak.

 

“Are you sure about him?” she asked, suddenly causing Hiro to tense up. The genius looked at Gogo for a moment before the question sunk into his mind. He found himself relaxing a bit before he looked away.

 

“Maybe?” he said as Gogo looked at him. “I’m not sure myself.”

 

“It’s—scary, Hiro,” she said quietly as Hiro nodded. “Not everyone goes through things like this.”

 

“I know,” he said. “But Gogo—he…he’s so much like him.”

 

“You don’t think?” Gogo asked, carefully trying to contemplate the options. Silence lingered for a while before Hiro nodded. He had his suspicions and the reluctance of Baymax scanning him just now somehow had proven a little bit of his theory. “ _Really_?”

 

“I don’t want to get my hopes too high though,” he said. “I mean, it seems better if he was just a different Tadashi after all. Just imagine, Tadashi Hamada back from the dead.” Hiro could only quiet down from there as the silence once again followed in. Even though he said that, Hiro wanted this Tadashi to be his brother even if it was a little. It would be great to at least get some recognition in those brown eyes. But then again, if this Tadashi was really his Tadashi, how in the world was he going to react? Gogo noticed the look on the Hamada’s face before she shook her head gently.

 

“He has the vibe, you know?” Gogo said. “That vibe only Hamadas can have. That cool, genius,” she said and paused a bit before continuing, “ _Show-off_ ,” she purposely looked at Hiro only for him to chuckle a bit. “But warm, friendly and slightly childish vibe. I don’t think I would’ve believed he’s a Takachiho if I didn’t know his last name.”

 

“And you believe he _is_ a Takachiho now?” Hiro asked as she looked at him and shrugged.

 

“I don’t know,” she said. “Something about him just isn’t— _right_. Hiro,” she said suddenly, catching him off guard with her tone which portrayed her seriousness. “Just be careful, okay?”

 

Hiro furrowed his eyebrows at that for a moment before he nodded. He knew where Gogo was coming from. She didn’t want to see him spiralling out of control like he did once. He didn’t want to either. He didn’t like the feeling, as if he had lost his way in life. Without his brother, it was as if someone had turned off the lights inside of his head and he couldn’t see what he was doing. And when this Tadashi had come into his life, the light was switched on again, and for a moment he let himself believe that this was temporary. He let himself believe that one day, when he wakes up, the light would be switched off again and he would once again immerse himself into the darkness.

 

But he couldn’t keep it temporary now that he had learned that this Tadashi was so much like his Tadashi. He didn’t want to keep it temporary. He _needed_ him now. And as much as he tried not to get his hopes too high for him, Hiro couldn’t help it anymore. Everything seemed so right when he was with him. Looking away from Gogo and to the sky once again, he let the wind blow into their faces.

 

“Okay.”

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, uh, yeah~ It's a bit shorter but hopefully compact! I tried my best to actually get the emotions and settings right as well as trying to keep them in character. Please notice the word 'tried'. Besides that, I'm posting early because, mainly, I'm nervous. I'm going to get my exam results this Tuesday which is like a day away and this results are real important to pursue studies in universities. And gah, I'm just so effin nervous just thinking about it. ;w; Wish me luck! Anyways, so that's why, I occupied my time with writing~ Hope you guys liked this chapter! Do comment to let me know what you guys thought about it and thanks for the continued support! ^^ See you in the next chappie soon~! -Krystal


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Nei. Nope. Na-uh. Not mine. 
> 
> You, where the hell did you come from? You’re a different, different kind of fun, And I’m so used to feeling numb – Heartbeat Song (Kelly Clarkson)

 

 

Hiro stared at the metal chunks on his table as he sighed loudly, frustration seeping into every breath he exhaled. He couldn’t make sense of what was in front of him, as much as he tried to. The weapon was complex and Hiro—he usually enjoyed complexity but these things could really do harm to his patience. Staring at that lifeless metal weapon on his table, he took a step back and ran his fingers through his hair. His shoulders were tensed up and his body shagged slightly awkwardly.

 

It had been two days since the last attack. Hiro was always on his feet, his team always looking out for signs that the thief would strike again. They started to parole around the city for safety measures but even though they tried their best not to miss any signs of the thief, San Fransokyo was a huge city. There would always be something that they would miss. He just hoped that those things weren’t something that would threaten lives and destroy buildings.

 

When the sun would shine and the birds would chirp as they greeted daylight, Hiro would find himself once again leaning against his lab desk, trying to figure out how to monopolise electricity and make it focus straight ahead without faltering or disappearing like some mysterious link. But after so many calculations and tries, there was no way he could get the electricity to sizzle straight ahead. The electrons were too fast for him to focus.

 

So, he did the next best thing.

 

He tore the weapon apart and tried to see what the focusing item was. But at the end, he couldn’t really find anything to work with. The weapon was slightly damaged when it had hit the ground. Hiro rubbed his eyes a bit before he stared at the desk. He hadn’t slept properly and usually, it wouldn’t eat away his energy like this but the fact that there were so many things happening all at once in his life lately, the younger Hamada couldn’t help but to feel restless and slightly needy for someone to complain to.

 

He hadn’t went out of his lab unless it was for classes and at night, he would join his team to survey around, hoping to find some other clue to fix this puzzles altogether. His friends didn’t think it would be wise either, to leave their own labs until they found out the solution. But, despite it all, they still wanted to relax and unwind from the headaches of this case. Gogo also had enough of Hiro’s needs in the lab and had dragged him out once again, for some needed fresh air.

 

Back at the lab after two hours of nothing but outdoors, he tried to work with this but in the end, he could only feel the frustration building up inside of him. He didn’t like it when there was some paradox that he couldn’t answer. This enigma had written in his life with big, black bold letters, asking and seeking for his attention but at the same time, hiding away from his sight. Hiro was never patient and this was more than what he could endure.

 

The young genius didn’t even know that the day had long gone dark. Gogo had stopped by with Wasabi before she left home, asking Hiro to finish things up quickly and head home as well. She was worried, Hiro could tell, but he didn’t really want to listen. Looking away from his desk, he looked around for the wall clock only to realise it was almost seven. Sighing loudly and irritated, he felt the tiredness seeping through his focus walls.

 

Just then, the lab door slid open. Hiro didn’t have to turn around to see who it was. He knew it from the way the person walked. He had memorised how deep and stomped the footsteps were. How the feet always touched the ground completely before taking another step. It was something that Hiro found unique, even though he didn’t know why it was.

 

“You’re not going home?”

 

Hiro just smiled for a moment before he groaned loudly and rubbed his face with his hands. Tadashi had gotten used to fitting himself around Hiro’s life after the scene at Fred’s mansion. His friends were also trying to get along with him, even though some times the shadow of melancholy would wash on their faces whenever Tadashi did something that seemed familiar with their Tadashi.

 

It was hard, Hiro had to admit. Tadashi, _this_ Tadashi, he was something that all of them had thought they wouldn’t get to experience again. The aura around this Tadashi was similar to their Tadashi. That aura of needing to experiment on something and yet at the same time the smile of satisfaction when he had found the solution, it was all nostalgic to them. Hiro sometimes couldn’t accept the fact that this was how things were. This was how reality had chosen to make him live his life.

 

Hiro, silently though, despite of what this Tadashi had said to convince him, he was still waiting for the day when he would wake up to find that this was all a twisted _dream_. He didn’t think he would ever feel this way again. The soft warmness of knowing that someone understood him from within and the slight embarrassment that someone could read him like an open book without him saying anything, he didn’t think he would be relishing in them once more. These feelings had disappeared and died when his Tadashi had passed away. These feelings were solely from Tadashi and _him_ only and Hiro didn’t even dream of the day when he would be able to feel this way again.

 

This Tadashi, as well, tried his best to fit around them. Some awkward silences would fill in once in a while but after he stayed for a few hours, things would go back to normal, the atmosphere around them once again filling into completion, just like when the real Tadashi was there. Hiro would find it a sign, a sign that this could be his brother—but when the name _Takachiho_ rang into his mind, he would quickly dampen the thought and move on with his life.

 

Over and over again, he would start being wishful and hopeful that this was his brother, in a different form. But time again and again, he would kick that thought far away from him, only for him to realise that he would be thinking of it once more. It didn’t settle well inside of Hiro. He knew that this would lead into trouble but what could he do? He was this boy, deep inside, that needed his older brother and when there was a close second, he couldn’t help but want him to be _the_ older brother.

 

The nightly outings however, were not accompanied by Tadashi. So far, Hiro had made sure that Tadashi never knew that Big Hero 6 had gone out every night since that night to check around the city. But the younger Hamada knew that this man had some suspicions. The Tadashi look-alike however kept quiet about it and Hiro couldn’t have been more thankful for that. The conversation that would follow right after that said topic was something that Hiro couldn’t handle going through again.

 

After that night, Tadashi had gone back home, reassuring Hiro once again that he was fine and no, he didn’t Baymax to check him for more accurate assessment of his health. The younger Hamada found it weird that he kept on refusing Baymax and the creeping suspicion that this maybe—indeed—even though as _crazy_ as it sounded—could be the _real_ Tadashi deepened and relived in his heart. However, he didn’t want to entertain that thought. He didn’t dare himself to entertain it. He didn’t want to feel disappointed when he found out that this was really someone who looked like his brother. So, he buried the suspicion deep down inside until a situation would arise and he would let his question be known to Tadashi.

 

Glancing at the taller man who was standing at the entrance with a knowing look on his face, Hiro sighed slightly. “I’m going, I’m going,” he muttered out. “But first, I really need to calculate this _one_ more time.”

 

He heard Tadashi chuckling and before Hiro could make it to the table, he felt him tugging on his arm and pulling him away from his destination. “You can do it tomorrow,” Tadashi said before he grabbed onto Hiro’s bag which was lying on the chair and gave it to Hiro. “I’m sure you can risk one night for some rest.”

 

“I’m well rested!” Hiro protested even though he took the bag and allowed himself to be pulled away. Tadashi just eyed him for a moment before a mischievous smirk made way on his lips.

 

“ _Uh-huh_ ,” he said casually only for Hiro to narrow his eyes at the man. “I’m sure you are. That’s why you look like a hobo.”

 

“What?” Hiro asked, annoyed. “I don’t! You should talk!” Hiro exclaimed as they walked out of the laboratory, Tadashi finally letting Hiro go as they made way side by side down the hall. Tadashi sighed before he ran his fingers through his hair, messing it up even more. Hiro eyed him for a while as he noticed how disarrayed he looked. His clothes were crinkled and his eyes looked less alive. Hiro knew that he was tired. Every step he took, it screamed out exhaustion.

 

“I had a lot to do,” Tadashi said before he shrugged casually. “But you, on the other hand, need extra-rest more than I do. Especially if you keep on _sneaking away_ at night to catch the thief.”

 

Hiro stopped dead on his tracks as he looked at Tadashi walking away a bit. The man noticed that the younger Hamada hadn’t followed before he stopped himself and turned around to look at him. Raising an eyebrow, he looked Hiro in the face for a while before he sighed. “How did you know that?”

 

“You didn’t think I would know?” he said. “Hiro, Fred isn’t really someone who keeps secrets well.”

 

“That _Fredzilla_ ,” Hiro muttered under his breath, displeased. He knew that Fred was the only one so far in his team who was making extra effort to hang around with Tadashi. Something in the man relived again, as if someone had placed back an on button inside of him. Hiro knew that Fred wasn’t someone who pondered around silence and loneliness much. Fred had told them himself that the loneliness he felt at home was more than enough to last a lifetime. Hiro didn’t really stop him when he hung around Tadashi, it was one of the things that would allow him to accept this man faster and Tadashi, he liked hanging around Fred too.

 

Hiro just didn’t think that Fred would be so quick to tell.

 

Hiro noted in his mind to downgrade Fred’s suit later on for revenge.

 

“So, you didn’t say anything about it,” Hiro said slowly as he looked back at the man. Tadashi glanced at him for a minute before he chuckled. Silence followed for a while before he sighed softly.

 

“I didn’t think you would listen anyway,” he said, making Hiro crack a small smile before he rubbed the back of his neck, tiredness once again seeping through.

 

“Well, you’re right about that,” Hiro muttered under his breath.

 

That was all said and exchanged between the two of them as they continued to walk away from SFIT. The darkened night and the sudden shower of the stars made Hiro feel relaxed. “Hey,” Hiro called out as Tadashi just hummed out as an answer. “Do you want to have dinner with us tonight?”

 

Tadashi looked at Hiro once again before he shrugged. “If your aunt doesn’t mind…”

 

“I’m pretty sure she’d be happy to have you,” Hiro said as he looked at the man and smiled. It took merely a few seconds before Tadashi nodded. Something told Hiro that Tadashi was more than willing to eat something right at the moment.

 

* * *

 

 

“It’s such a pleasure to have you around for dinner, Tadashi,” Cass said as she took her seat in front of Tadashi and Hiro. Her eyes softened as she glanced at both of them, the silence accompanying after her words were comfortable and complete. Tadashi just smiled warmly before he looked at his plate of spaghetti.

 

“This looks delicious,” Tadashi said as she smiled at the compliment. Hiro on the other hand, simply rolled up the noodles around his fork and shoved it into his mouth. The truth was, even though the younger Hamada would rather stay in his lab all day than to eat or do anything else, it didn’t scratch the fact that he was starved. Cass looked at Hiro for a moment before she sighed and shook her head slightly before she went ahead to eating. Tadashi ate the noodles less messy, quickly giving an amused glance at Hiro once in a while at the hungry Hamada.

 

Hiro noticed the looks Tadashi was giving before he slurped onto the noodle into his mouth and looked at the man with a small frown on his lips. “What?” he asked, slightly irritated at the curving smirk on the man’s face. Tadashi just chuckled before he shook his head slowly.

 

“You eat as if you hadn’t eaten anything the whole day,” he said as Hiro snorted and continued to eating. Silence covered for a while before Tadashi stared at Hiro. “Wait, you didn’t eat anything the _whole_ day?” Concern threaded through his tone as Cass suddenly looked up at Hiro, her eyes sharp and alarmed. Hiro almost choked onto his noodles before he looked at Tadashi and straightened himself.

 

Hiro had forgotten how Tadashi could read him so openly. He didn’t know how in the world this man could read him like that but he did. Hiro didn’t want Tadashi to know everything obvious about him and when he did, the younger Hamada felt— _exposed_. Like he was wearing nothing but his heart on his sleeve. It felt awkward and it felt uncomfortable and sometimes, it brought him trouble, like now for an instance. However, the warmth crawling into the depths of his heart at the concern latched in his voice and the thought that he actually cared about Hiro, made him almost smile. The situation, it didn’t matter even if it was the worst one he had ever been, the lacing emotions in Tadashi’s tone when he talked to Hiro would always make him feel loved.

 

But at moments, such as these, sometimes, Hiro would appreciate it if Tadashi could keep his little observations to himself. He was eating now, wasn’t he? Cass had always wanted him to eat well, knowing that this younger Hamada loved skipping out on meals if he could. He didn’t want to upset Cass, even though, he sometimes does without really meaning to.

 

“I _did_ eat something,” Hiro quickly said, glancing at Cass for a moment before he licked his lips, tasting the tomato sauce. After a pause, “Gogo forced me to eat something, really,” Hiro said defensively when he realised that none of them were buying his story. It was true, Gogo did force him to eat, but he wouldn’t really call the food he ate as lunch. It was just a small sandwich and even that, he had thrown half of it into the trash bin because it tasted weird. Gogo was like a substitute Cass when he was away from her. He didn’t really want another nagging mother but Gogo, she doesn’t really nag. She was more of an action type of girl and Hiro, he was the victim. So, he was forced to eat something, despite his protest. She didn’t even listen to Hiro’s threats of downgrading her suit until she stopped and turned around, glaring at Hiro and hissing out that if he didn’t eat anything, she would force something down his throat until he choked.

 

Hiro didn’t want to get onto her bad side. He knew that she was concerned and the stress of the classes and this case was taking a toll on her too. Finally, though reluctantly, he agreed. Only to end up hungry again after two hours after that outside stroll.

 

“Hiro,” Cass said, her tone warningly aimed at the younger Hamada who was just sighing.

 

“It’s true! I ate a _sandwich_ ,” Hiro said. After a beat, he added, “Half a sandwich.”

 

Tadashi just rolled his eyes at the young genius before he went back to eating his spaghetti. “Hiro, you need to eat better,” Cass said slowly, her voice sounding worried and concerned. Hiro just smiled at his aunt before looking at Tadashi and glared playfully. With that, he continued to eat his spaghetti, shoving it down his throat, trying to get his hunger to subside.

 

“I will, Aunt Cass.”

 

* * *

 

 

Dinner was uneventful, but it held the calm atmosphere most of the time. Tadashi would sometimes crack a joke or two, even though his tiredness was clearly showing in those brown eyes. After dinner, Tadashi had tried to get back home, only for Cass to ask him to stay a bit longer. The truth was, Hiro didn’t want Tadashi to go back either. Tadashi looked torn between going back home and staying for a moment before he resigned and nodded. After that, he just followed Hiro into his room. Casually dropping on his bed, Hiro sighed loudly, rubbing his one of his shoulders.

 

“Tired, huh?” Tadashi asked as he closed the door to the younger Hamada’s room, a faint click resounding through the room. Hiro looked at the man who was standing against the door and smiled before a yawn threatened to stifle through his lips. Tadashi looked at Hiro for a moment before he sighed. Looking away from the younger Hamada, he looked around the room before his eyes fell on the divider. Hiro followed his eyes before he spotted the divider, dividing his brother’s side from his side of the room.

 

Ache, painful shallow ache once again relived through his chest as he closed his eyes for a moment before sighing once again, this time sounding more like defeated. Tadashi dropped his eyes from there before he looked back at Hiro. Silence enveloped between them as none of them made any move to talk. Hiro just let his mind to race back to those memories, those memories when Tadashi was still alive. When his Tadashi was still smiling at him or when his Tadashi would teach him new things about robotics every day. He remembered faintly when he would wait for his brother to come back home, just to show the new things he created.

 

Tadashi would smile at him, telling him that he did great and if there were any faults, the older Hamada would point them out gently and help Hiro fix them. Those types of things were the one he missed the most. Especially when at nights, when the rain would come down as hard as it could, as if it was trying to drown everything in its path, Tadashi would allow Hiro to sit next to him and they would talk.

 

Talk about anything and everything.

 

Sometimes, they didn’t even exchange any words. They would just sit there and enjoy each other’s comforting presence. They never really hugged or anything close like that, even though Hiro wondered now why they didn’t. It sounded so trivial back then but so important now that Tadashi had gone. If only they were closer, closer than they could actually be, maybe Hiro would know what it felt like to hug Tadashi or feel his smiles from deep inside of his chest. Now, all he had to compare with his Tadashi was this Tadashi, in front of him, staring at him.

 

“Are you alright?” he asked, his voice gentle and caring, jolting Hiro out from his thoughts.

 

Hiro looked at the man who was looking at him, his face shagged with tiredness once again, blaring out at him that he needed to rest. Shoving those memories down inside of himself, the younger Hamada smiled and moved a bit to the left to give some space for the man to sit. Patting at the empty space, Hiro looked at Tadashi, hoping that he would accept it. Tadashi stared at the space for a minute before he nodded and pushed himself against the door before letting the force to propel him slightly forward until he reached to the bed. Sitting down next to Hiro with a soft slump, silence once again buried them six feet deep.

 

“I’m just tired,” Hiro replied after a while, breaking the deepening silence. Tadashi glanced at Hiro for a while before he smiled, the corners of his lips twitched a bit before he dropped it. “And you look tired too. Sorry if Aunt Cass made you stay here longer than you wanted to,” Hiro said slowly, his voice apologetic even though he wished that Tadashi would stay longer because he wanted to. Tadashi just sighed softly, sounding in contempt before he shook his head slightly.

 

“Nah,” he said. “I just didn’t want your aunt to feel weird around me,” Tadashi said before he looked at Hiro with a soft smile. “I do look like him.”

 

“An exact carbon copy,” Hiro agreed before he chuckled. “An exact copy.”

 

Tadashi just shrugged a bit before he scooted deeper into Hiro’s bed until he was leaning against the wall. His shoulders shagged downwards and his arms were on his lap. Hiro smiled at that before another yawn stifled through his lips. Tadashi looked at the younger Hamada for a second before he chuckled as well. “Maybe I should leave so you could sleep. I’m tired too actually.”

 

Hiro suddenly felt the panic rushing through him for a moment as he realised that Tadashi had started to move away from him, getting up from the bed. The younger Hamada’s eyes widened at that. He didn’t want Tadashi to leave, he wanted to stay next to him a bit longer. He didn’t want to sleep alone again. The thoughts filled his mind a dozen times all the time before this Tadashi had come into his life. He didn’t like to bask himself in the loneliness. He wanted company, he always craved for company. Now, Tadashi was here, he didn’t want to let him go. Silent panic filled the empty tired voids of his mind until his logic didn’t sound well to him anymore. Before he could think further about what he was going to do, Hiro’s hand shot out and grabbed onto the man’s wrist.

 

Tadashi stopped getting up and immediately sat down again next to Hiro when he felt Hiro squeezing his wrist. “Hiro?” he asked out as Hiro looked at him for a moment. Silence crawled in between them before the younger Hamada felt his cheeks burn. However so, he didn’t let Tadashi’s wrist go. He was slightly scared, he was scared that if he let the wrist go, then Tadashi would get up and leave again.

 

“I— _Don’t_ _leave_ ,” Hiro said suddenly, his lips moving without his consent and words started to fall out without him approving. Tadashi went deadly still as his eyes widened a bit. Staring at the younger Hamada, Hiro felt the awkwardness seeping through the thin barriers of their comfortable silence. Just then, in a beat of a second, Hiro realised that maybe Tadashi had really wanted to go home. Maybe he didn’t really want to stay. The young genius felt a sharp stab in his heart before he reluctantly let Tadashi’s wrist go, his eyes slowly softening in defeat. “Uh, never mind. Sorry, you can leave if you want to.”

 

Silence still lingered on before he felt a hand touching his hair, messing it up slightly. Looking up to Tadashi, the man had a warm smile on his face. “You want me to stay for the night?” he asked, his voice sounding slightly amused but mostly threaded with affection. Hiro felt his heart skip a beat and his cheeks tinting a deeper shade of red before he looked away, his right hand rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

 

“Only if you want to,” Hiro said slowly, his words drawing out carefully as to assure that the man had a choice to leave. Looking back at the man in the eyes, Hiro said, “Only if you want to.”

 

Tadashi just grinned out for a moment before he took his hand away from Hiro’s head. Somehow, Hiro felt quite disappointed at that. He liked the soft caresses he received once in a while and then to suddenly have it stop, it felt a bit unsatisfying. Tadashi raised an eyebrow at the soft pout Hiro’s lips were making before he chuckled. Before Hiro could do anything, Tadashi had touched his lips and suddenly pinched them. “Stop pouting like that. You look like a real kid.”

 

Hiro’s eyes immediately narrowed at the words as he tried to pry Tadashi’s fingers from his lips. He tried to ask Tadashi to stop hurting his lips but all that came out was some noiseless muffles. Tadashi chuckled at that, his eyes glimmering with humour as Hiro struggled away with those fingers. Trying to move backwards, he didn’t expect Tadashi’s fingers to suddenly loosen up. Immediately at the sheer panic that he was falling on his back on the bed too fast, he clamped onto Tadashi’s shirt and dragged him over. Without him realising, finally, his back hit the mattress and Tadashi landed on top of Hiro with a small _ouph_.

 

“You okay?” Tadashi asked as he slowly raised himself from Hiro, looking at the younger Hamada underneath him. Hiro just sighed loudly before he looked at Tadashi. He rubbed his lips with a glare before looking away, not really registering the way they were entangled together. Tadashi raised an eyebrow in humour before he leaned in close, his elbows now at either side of the young genius’s head, trying to support himself so he wouldn’t smash face first into Hiro’s face painfully. Hiro felt the soft warm breath on his cheeks before he quickly turned to face Tadashi.

 

His breath hitched and his eyes widened when he realised how close this man was. His cheeks reddened a moment before he furrowed his eyebrows. “What are you doing?” Hiro asked, the uncomfortable position finally registering into his mind. Tadashi just chuckled before he leaned in closer. Hiro felt his heart yammering against his chest and all of a sudden, he didn’t like where this was going. “ _Tadashi_ ,” he warned, even though his voice was barely above a whisper. Before he could protest, Tadashi moved his lips up to Hiro’s forehead and gave him a kiss there. Silence washed in as Hiro felt the slightly chapped lips on his forehead and the warmth accompanying it.

 

Then, Tadashi slinked away and ended up on his side next to Hiro, smiling widely at the embarrassment on Hiro’s face. Hiro blinked a few times, trying to register what had happened before his right hand slowly made way to his forehead and touched it. His fingers grazed around the area where Tadashi’s lips had been before he slowly turned around to look at the man. A few more seconds passed before Hiro opened his mouth to speak. “ _What_ was _that_?”

 

“An ‘ _I’m-sorry_ ’ kiss,” Tadashi said amused before Hiro blinked again. Silence ventured in before Hiro ended up chuckling, unsure to why he found this situation to be hilarious. Somehow, this felt really funny to the younger Hamada. Maybe the exhaustion was finally getting to him. Once again, none of them spoke after that as they settled into each other’s presence, enjoying the comfort each of them offered. After a few seconds, Tadashi decided to change the subject and said, “Did you manage to get anything out of that theory of yours?”

 

Hiro immediately groaned, sighing loudly when he remembered the failed tests and the miscalculations he had done. “It’s really frustrating because I can’t find the missing parts to focus the electricity,” Hiro complained silently. Tadashi just raised an eyebrow in question but Hiro just shook his head slightly. “It just needs more thought.” He really didn’t want to remember about it as he shook the thought away. Quickly turning to his side, he faced Tadashi with a smile. “What about you? You look really exhausted today,” he asked, changing the subject once more swiftly.

 

“Assignments,” Tadashi said shortly, enough for the younger Hamada to get a sense of what he was trying to say. “They’re really dragging me down. Especially when you have a hyperactive partner to do it with.” Hiro raised an eyebrow at that before Tadashi cracked a smile and continued, “Bailey. Her name’s Bailey.”

 

“ _Bailey_?” Hiro asked, the name tasting weird and sharp at the edge of his tongue.

 

“The girl who wears a pony-tail. The same girl who was in awe with your intelligence the other day,” Tadashi said, trying to jog Hiro’s memories. Hiro furrowed his eyebrows as he tried to recall the girl. When her face flashed into his mind, a frown tugged at his lips. Bailey was the girl who looked at Hiro as if she couldn’t believe he was there. She was also the girl that stood too close to Tadashi that day. A sharp pang of annoyance went through his mind, not really sure as to why he was annoyed.

 

“ _Ah_ ,” was all Hiro said, his voice coming out dry as he bit his bottom lip. Tadashi chuckled at that before a yawn escaped his lips. The younger Hamada couldn’t stop himself and before he knew it, he was yawning as well. Both stared at each other for a passing second before chuckling again. “We’re really tired, huh?” Hiro asked absent-mindedly as Tadashi nodded, his eyes seemingly drooping down. “Let’s sleep,” Hiro said slowly as he was glad that for once, he didn’t turn on the lights in his room when they sauntered in.

 

Tadashi just hummed a bit before he looked at Hiro one more time and smiled, the look looking a little lost on him. “Good night, Hiro,” he said as he raised his hand slowly and gently patted Hiro’s head. Hiro couldn’t help but to smile back before he felt the weight of the tiredness seeping into him as well, daring him to close his eyes. But fear suddenly washed in when he realised that Tadashi might not be here anymore in the morning. He was scared that when he opened his eyes again, this man wouldn’t be around. Slowly, and gingerly, Hiro placed his hand on Tadashi’s who was patting him. Tadashi’s eyes became slightly alert before he stopped patting and rested his hand on the younger Hamada’s head. “What’s wrong?” he asked, his voice laced with worry and concern.

 

Hiro just gripped onto the hand tightly and sighed softly once more. “You’ll be here in the morning, right?” he asked, his voice barely above a whisper. Tadashi smiled once more before he scooted closer. Hiro just raised an eyebrow at the closeness before he felt Tadashi’s hand escaping from his grasp and moving down to his back. “What—” Before Hiro could protest, Tadashi had placed his hand at Hiro’s back and pushed him close towards himself before wrapping his arms around the young genius. Hiro’s face hit Tadashi’s chest and he felt Tadashi’s chin resting on the crown of his head. “Tadashi?” he asked, his voice sounding a bit shaky from the sudden closeness.

 

“I’ll be here in the morning,” Tadashi said, his voice gentle and caring. Seconds ticked on as Hiro tried to process the information. With that said, the fear slowly dissipated as Hiro smiled softly at that. Gingerly, Hiro placed his hands around Tadashi, hugging him as he snuggled closer to the warmth basking him even underneath their clothes. It was comforting and it was peaceful. It was something that he had longed for since the death of his brother. “I’ll always be here.”

 

The words sounded echoic as it reached Hiro’s mind. But he didn’t register it. The tiredness overwhelmed and overpowered him finally, as Hiro let his eyes shut close. The darkness claimed both of them in an instance as they slept entangled together. Hiro had never felt so peaceful in his life. He wanted this moment to last. Clutching onto Tadashi a bit tighter, his mind finally propelled into blank whiteness, ensuring him to shut down and let go for the night.

 

Lolling with this warmth covering him like a comfy blanket, Hiro did exactly just that.

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Eh well...it's short, isn't it? ouo This was actually kinda like a bonding chapter between Tadashi and Hiro since ya, it's needed for what I'm gonna do next! Anyways, I'm sorry for the late update, guys. I just got my exam results about 4 days ago and yay, I got excellent results! So, and then, life became busy again as I'm preparing for my university life soon. But overall, I managed to write this chapter down! Hope you all enjoyed this chapter and ah, well, do comment below to let me know what you guys thought of this~! And ahah, most of you are convinced this is the real Tadashi, eh~? Well, let's see if that's correct as we continue on our journey! Do continue to support me and I'll see you guys soon in the next chappie! - Krystal


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Neit. Not mine!
> 
> Ku termenung seorang diri, Ku menangis disebalik sepi, Ku mencari cebisan memori, Yang kunamakan misteri – Aku Juga Manusia (Amir Jahari)
> 
> [English Translation: I mused to myself alone, I cried behind this silent loneliness, I’m looking for a piece of memory, that I called mystery.] - I’m Human Too (Amir Jahari)

 

 

Orange, the bright orange mixed itself with the silent calming yellow, as they mashed up together gracefully and coloured the sky. The blue—the hue blue that was slightly paler greeted the new mix of colours with pleasure, basking the city of San Fransokyo with it. The darkness, the starlit night slowly faded away, dragging off the moon and the twinkling coldness, immediately replacing the atmosphere with clear warmth from the sun.

 

Through the windows, the room brightened slowly. At first, the dim light wasn’t enough to stir anyone awake. But then, the light brightened as if someone had decided to increase the voltage and slowly, the sharpness of the morning light was letting itself known when it hit the two entangled humans on the bed. It was enough, this time, to stir the shorter one of them two awake, his eyes squeezing a bit before fluttering open.

 

His mind frizzled slightly from the long night sleep. The calmness, it surged through him for a moment and the softening warmth made him smile gently on his sleepy face. He hadn’t felt so contempt in such a long time. He hadn’t felt this light since two years ago. There was a short huff of warmness huffing on his left cheek, and slowly Hiro felt the huff of air sliding away from his cheek to the edge of his jaw. Blinking a few times to get rid of the morning dizziness, he slowly looked to his left. His eyes stayed transfixed a moment at the person before the reality washed up on him.

 

It was a soft-wave, something that didn’t frighten Hiro immediately and he was thankful that for once, he didn’t have a morning panic attack. Looking at the man, he realised it was Tadashi, his face facing Hiro. His nose bumped at the younger Hamada’s cheek and after a few seconds, Hiro realised it felt a bit awkward to have him sleeping like this next to him. However, Hiro couldn’t help but to continue to stare at the man sleeping. His eyes were shut and there was something familiar about the sense of calmness on his face.

 

It immediately reminded him of his Tadashi and that part of the cruel reality jabbed him into his heart. The dull ache relived once more and just when Hiro thought that maybe, that just maybe he wouldn’t wake up feeling as if someone had abandoned him—the feeling crawled into him again without any warning. The bitterness of the recognition that this wasn’t his brother fuelled the sudden melancholy that wired up and wound around his fragile heart. Sighing, he pushed away those thoughts when they were leading his mind astray to somewhere less friendly. Once he tried to move his arm, he felt a sudden tightness around his body.

 

Confusion filled the Hamada’s mind before he looked away from Tadashi to where his arms were. Hiro felt something strange resounding inside of him when he found out that he was covered and entangled by Tadashi’s arm and legs. His arm was across the younger Hamada’s chest and tugging it tightly without mind and his left leg draped around Hiro’s. The young genius couldn’t remember when he had changed his position against Tadashi’s chest to sleeping on his back and getting entangled around the man’s limbs, but apparently he had if he was waking up like this.  

 

Seconds ticked on before Hiro finally felt the haziness in his mind drifting away. He shifted slightly under this dead weight for a moment before he heard Tadashi groaning a bit under his breath. Hiro looked at him for a moment as Tadashi flickered his eyelids open. Staring a bit at the younger Hamada, a soft smile wormed its way on his slightly chapped lips. The morning light that dawned on them both had finally decided it was time that they had woken up. Seconds ticked on slowly before Hiro smiled back at him wryly before sighing.

 

“Good morning,” Tadashi said raspy, his morning voice sounding scratchy and slightly itchy. Hiro just hummed out as a response before the younger Hamada yawned, couldn’t help but to contain the slight jump of excitement and happiness when he realised that the man stayed for the night and he didn’t leave him in the morning. Slowly but surely, the man detangled himself and moved away from the younger Hamada, sighing loudly before he propped up on his elbow. He ran his fingers through his already messy hair and stretched a bit. Hiro didn’t waste any time to slowly sit up, rubbing his eyes in circular motion with the crook of his thumbs before yawning once more.

 

With that, the younger Hamada stretched his hands forward, bending his body slightly forward before he felt the small stretching of his muscles, enjoying how it loosened up the tenseness. Hiro didn’t say anything else and just sighed happily. The way they had woken up, it wasn’t something usual to Hiro. He was a boy who loved his private space and he would do anything to keep anyone from coming near him, and especially crawl into bed and sleep next to him. But he would always let Tadashi in though. He was the only one who loved him sincerely, unlike others, not including Aunt Cass or any of his friends but they didn’t qualify to be in this list at the moment.

 

There was just something calming about sharing everything of his life with his once-alive brother. Tadashi would listen and then he would advise and if Hiro was really out of it at the moment, he wouldn’t say anything at all and just—listen. Sometimes, if Hiro could recall at moments when he needed someone to hold him, he would remember back to the days when Hiro would get really lonely whenever his brother went on trips with either the school or the institute. He would remember crawling onto his brother’s bed and just lay down there before the comforting bed lolled him to sleep.

 

He tried to keep this a secret though, but he couldn’t help but to recall at a time when he was discovered. When Tadashi had come home earlier than he should’ve and saw Hiro sleeping on his bed, he tried to wake the younger Hamada up. At that time, Hiro was barely eleven. He was a genius alright but he wasn’t a genius in copping up with the loneliness. There was a lot of emotional breakthrough that night when the young genius ended up crying because he didn’t like it whenever Tadashi left.

 

He remembered how Tadashi hugged him and kissed the top of his head, letting Hiro cry out or wail or just simply mumble into his embrace until the boy ended up sleeping. And with that, Tadashi slept next to him, just to coo him into comfort. Hiro guessed that was the last time he had spent his nights with Tadashi. He grew up from that stage—well, he _thought_ he did. Now, when Tadashi died, he couldn’t help but to want to do that again. Want to be able to hug Tadashi as he fell asleep. It was a depressing feeling when he realised that he wouldn’t be able to do that again. It would be weird, he had thought to himself one time when he caught himself wanting to crawl onto Tadashi’s bed and sleep when Tadashi had been locking himself up in the SFIT lab for three days straight.

 

But now, it didn’t sound so weird.

 

They were everything to each other.

 

They had no parents, besides Aunt Cass, they had no one else they could rely on and depend on. So, it would only make sense to find comfort in each other until one day, they could find somebody else to offer that place and so much more. But Hiro doubted anyone else could take Tadashi’s place. His caring ways and care-free smiles were the ones that kept Hiro from shutting down or crying every night whenever he thought about his parents, who he couldn’t even _remember_ meeting because they died when he was only four.

 

Snapping out of his thoughts, he sighed when he looked at the man next to him, who was now sitting down and rubbing his face, looking real pleased with himself at the moment. This man suddenly came into his life and changed the grey, dark days into something bright again—just like how his Tadashi could do. And even though right at this moment, he didn’t have his real brother next to him, he was starting to accept this man as the close second. Even if it was just for a single moment before he would throw that idea out of his mind because, in reality, his brother was the only one in his life that mattered the most.

 

And not even this look-alike would win that crown.

 

“Sorry about that,” Tadashi apologised after a beat, his voice now sounding slightly clearer. Hiro looked at the man and then raised an eyebrow at that. Tadashi looked at the younger Hamada before smiling sheepishly. “I ended up trapping you like that just now.”

 

Hiro just cracked a smile before he shook his head gently. Gulping a bit to drown the raw morning feeling he tasted in his mouth, he said, “It’s fine. This bed’s too small anyway.” Hiro scratched the back of his head a bit before yawning once more, finally able to get the reality into his mind. He had a lot of things to do today and one of it was definitely trying to figure out how to utilise the weapon. Maybe he would get it this time. Furrowing his eyebrows, he went through the calculations in his head once more before shaking it off when he felt a slight headache coming on. He would need to eat something first before he could begin to solve this strange annoying paradox.

 

Tadashi remained quiet next to him for a moment before the younger Hamada felt him shift slightly. Looking at the man, Tadashi just looked back at him and smiled. “I—uh—need to use the bathroom,” he said sheepishly as Hiro chuckled.

 

“Do you know where it is?” Hiro asked as Tadashi nodded.

 

“Yeah, your aunt showed me that day, when I helped her out around the café,” Tadashi explained quickly before Hiro could analyse about it. With that, Hiro moved away from the edge of the bed so Tadashi could move out. Hiro watched him place his feet firmly on the floor before he got up, his body stretching once more upwards this time before he sighed loudly. Before Tadashi could take a step forward, Hiro immediately grabbed onto the edge of his shirt, tugging it slightly. This made the man to stop in his steps for a moment before he looked at Hiro.

 

“Thank you,” Hiro said quietly before he could even register what he was doing. Tadashi remained quiet for a moment before he chuckled and nodded. Hiro felt his hand touching the top of his head before he patted it.

 

“You’re welcome, Hiro,” Tadashi said before Hiro let the edge of his shirt go. After that, Hiro watched Tadashi leave the room, heading to the bathroom.

 

* * *

 

“I really didn’t mean to make you stay over, Tadashi,” Cass said, her voice slightly apologetic as she served pancakes. She placed a plate of pancakes in front of Hiro before she did the same to Tadashi. She also placed a few bottles of syrup and chocolate on the table before she settled down in front of them, eating her toast instead. Tadashi just smiled brightly, looking a bit younger from before due to the disappeared exhaustion from his face. Hiro insisted that the man took a shower at least and since Hiro had some of Tadashi’s clothes lying around, he gave it to him. He didn’t expect for the clothes to fit but when they did, it made Hiro feel better. About what, he wasn’t sure, but he felt better.

 

Hiro had taken a shower right after and realised that for the first time in a long time, he had slept really well. “It’s no problem, Aunt Cass,” he said slowly before he took a bite of his pancakes. Hiro just rolled his eyes before he shoved his first bite into his mouth, enjoying the sweetness of the syrup and the tenderness from the pancakes. Cass had a brief look of melancholy for a moment before she smiled back and looked at Hiro pointedly at his eating manners. Hiro noticed her look before he scowled slightly and this time, decently took another bite. Cass nodded at him with a smile before she went back to her toast, causing Hiro to roll his eyes once more.

 

“I hope you both had a pleasant night, then?” Cass asked as Hiro shrugged carelessly, too into the pancake at the moment to answer. Tadashi chuckled at that before he just nodded politely at the woman.

 

“Yeah,” he said to confirm. “Hiro was a nice pillow.”

 

Hiro choked into his pancakes as he quickly took the glass of orange juice and drank it, trying to keep himself from dying. Once his coughs subsided, he looked at the man next to him and glared. The embarrassment dyed him from within before he looked at Cass, who was looking at him amused. “What?” he asked as he felt his cheeks tinting red. “And what do you mean, pillow?” Hiro demanded as he looked back at Tadashi, who in return, shrugged carelessly just as how Hiro had done a few minutes ago.

 

“It’s nice to see you two getting along then,” Cass said, her voice tinting in sweetness. Hiro just bit his bottom lip from smiling even though he was annoyed at the turn of events. Sighing, Hiro went back to his pancakes, deliberately ignoring Tadashi’s poke on his cheek when he didn’t acknowledge the man in the next question. Cass just chuckled at the familiarity when Hiro smacked Tadashi’s finger away, jabbing the man’s thigh with his fork until he heard a sharp yelp in pain, making him to smile satisfied.

 

“That _hurts_ , Hiro,” Tadashi said, his lips almost formed a pout as he rubbed his thigh. Hiro just swirled around his fork in the air in triumph before he grabbed onto his orange juice to drink.

 

“I’m sure you’ll live,” Hiro said as he rolled his eyes at the man’s drama.

 

* * *

 

 

Once breakfast was over, Hiro and Tadashi had decided to head back to SFIT, one to figure out the theory and the other to finish up his assignments. Tadashi didn’t talk much but he did have that smile on his face that made Hiro smile back. They took a bus to the institute, not really talking. Hiro didn’t want to talk about anything either. He liked just having this man around, making him feel less void and less empty. He didn’t think he would get the chance to actually feel complete once more, but now, he did, and he didn’t want this moment to end.

 

Tadashi had looked different today, Hiro noticed. Something bright glimmered in his eyes and the way he smiled, it was as if someone had decided to hand him twenty tons of antibiotics to save the world’s health crisis, if that made sense. But the look of happiness portrayed the man did make the whole atmosphere lighter and calmer. Hiro furrowed his eyebrows a bit when he realised that he didn’t know why the man was feeling this way. Why was Tadashi smiling like that?

 

Leaning against the seat as the bus drove on, he looked at the man standing in front of him, looking at the windows behind of Hiro, that smile still on his face. “Why do you look so happy?” Hiro asked finally, unable to keep the question from escaping his lips. Tadashi immediately looked back at Hiro, his eyebrows raised in questioning before Hiro rolled his eyes at the confusion in those brown eyes. “Why are you so happy? It’s so early in the morning,” Hiro said slowly, grumbling slightly at the end. Hiro was never a morning person.

 

He disliked mornings. Maybe because he always wanted to sleep longer but the sun’s warmth would become slightly uncomfortable that he had to wake up at the end. Tadashi chuckled before he sighed, looking back outside of the window. After a beat of silence, he said, “I don’t know.”

 

Hiro looked back at the man with a puzzled look. “What do you mean you _don’t_ know? You’re really happy and you don’t know?”

 

Tadashi shrugged, not answering his question. Instead, he glanced at the younger Hamada and smiled widely, his smile looking like someone had dropped three tons of sunshine on his lips. Hiro almost flinched at the brightness but stopped himself, realising he would look weird to the outsiders. Hiro decided to let this matter rest since he was unlikely to receive any other answers out from him. But it didn’t bother Hiro. Somehow, he had a feeling, that he was happy because of him. It felt a bit egoistic for him to think so, but he couldn’t help himself. Deep, deep inside of Hiro, he knew that he was feeling the same way.

 

He was happy too. He was glad, mostly as well, that he was able to relish on the feeling of warmth, even if it was from someone who looked like his Tadashi. It was enough, for now, to keep him from losing himself into the loneliness, that beckoned him to meet it. He was glad—he was glad this man came into his life when he needed someone the most.

 

* * *

 

Hiro had walked into the institute, maybe even a bit reluctant to leave Tadashi’s side. However, when he remembered the equations and numbers that didn’t make sense lying on the lab desk, it made him move. Tadashi just smiled at him one last time, looking very well contempt with his life at the moment as he jogged off to his branch. Once Hiro had entered his lab, he didn’t expect to see his friends inside, already trying to figure out the equations as well.

 

The younger Hamada shifted and shuffled on his feet at the entrance for a moment before he sighed and walked in, the lab door sliding closed with a gentle thud. Gogo raised her head from her papers and looked at the genius before she blew out her bubble gum and popped it, raising an eyebrow at the apparent brightness the Hamada was portraying this early in the morning. “Hey, Hiro!” Honey Lemon said as she waved happily, her eyes looking back at the tablet she had in her hand.

 

“Hey,” Hiro said casually only to look back at Gogo, who was looking at him calculatedly. Raising an eyebrow to match her look, he said, “What?”

 

Gogo just chewed her bubble gum and shook her head before she shuffled the papers together into a neat stack and sighed. “You seem well rested,” she said, examining the younger Hamada for a moment before smiling. Hiro immediately recalled back to the reason why he was so well rested. He could feel the warmth worming its way into his heart for a moment before he stopped himself from smiling. It would pose a problem if he was suddenly smiling, as if he had this huge secret. Hiro just shrugged, avoiding the question as he went to his chair and dumped his bag on it. Looking on the table, he saw the wires and the small parts of the weapon lying scattered.

 

“No progress?” Hiro asked as he sighed and poked one of the parts, watching it roll slightly to the left before it stopped.

 

“Not likely,” Wasabi commented, sounding slightly put out. “What about you?”

 

“Nothing either,” Hiro said, more like grumbled, under his breath. “It doesn’t make sense. I can’t do it.” It tasted bitter, the declaration of defeat. He hated to lose, he hated the sense of defeat. He was never the person to give up, even if that said problem would leave him hanging for a moment. He remembered back to his brother, him smiling at Hiro and just whispering his favourite catchphrase.

 

_Look at a different angle._

 

It shook some familiarity inside of the younger Hamada but it didn’t actually solve the problem. Strange how Hiro thought that sentence, that tiny one-lined advice had helped him so far and suddenly, when he needed the solution the most, he couldn’t make-use it. Sighing softly under his breath, he slumped on his chair and leaned his head against the headboard. “It doesn’t make any sense,” Hiro complained for a moment. “Don’t you guys think so?” he said as he looked up to see his friends.

 

Wasabi just nodded meanwhile Fred, he was busy typing or doing something in his smartphone. Gogo on the other hand, was busy trying to make sense whatever it was on the paper before she furrowed her eyebrows in concentration. Hiro didn’t think anyone else was moving from square one either. Silence lapsed on before Hiro went back to his work, once again fuelled by the frustration that he couldn’t harness the electricity how he wanted to.

 

“So, you weren’t there last night,” Wasabi said out of the blue, catching Hiro’s attention. Looking at him, he raised an eyebrow, stopping mid-way with his marker pen doodling some numbers on the clear glass.

 

“What?” Hiro asked as Honey Lemon looked up from her tablet and smiled.

 

“We went on a parole last night,” she said, explaining to Hiro of what Wasabi had meant.

 

“You weren’t there, man,” Fred continued, his eyes not looking away from his smartphone.

 

“He was resting, like he should be,” Gogo cut in as she looked up from the papers and stared at Wasabi before looking down.

 

“Yeah, what she said,” Hiro said uninterested.

 

“You usually informed us,” Wasabi said before shrugging. “We thought you fell asleep in the lab.”

 

“You didn’t fall asleep in the lab, though, right?” Honey asked, her voice sounding slightly worried yet amused at the same time. Hiro just rolled his eyes at her before shaking his head, answering the question non-verbally.

 

A few seconds passed on before Hiro answered, “I didn’t get to stay here after seven.”

 

“Gogo dragged you off?” Fred asked, looking up from his smartphone finally, his lips stretching out into an amused smile. Gogo just gave Fred a look before shaking her head.

 

“I went back home with Wasabi,” she said dryly. “I don’t control everything in his life, guys.”

 

“One would think otherwise,” Hiro shot back only to receive a silent glare from the feisty woman. “Maybe not,” he quickly added before she got even with him. “Anyway, no. Tadashi did.”

 

Immediate silence filled the room and Hiro felt the awkwardness was mixing in this as well. He didn’t know what he had done wrong, but everyone looked at him with questioning looks on their faces. Honey looked as if she was merely confused, Wasabi’s eyes grown wide and Gogo was just raising an eyebrow at him. Fred, well, Fred just nodded at him with a smile on his face before he went back entertaining whatever on his smartphone. Hiro raised both of his eyebrows, unsure of what to say right now.

 

“Tadashi?” Wasabi asked, somehow trying to hold himself from wincing at the name. Hiro knew how it felt, to be saying a name that once meant something to somebody. Hiro nodded, nether the less. He didn’t think he did anything wrong though. “You’re so casual about this,” Wasabi continued on for a moment. Hiro remained quiet for a second as he tried to analyse what Wasabi had said. For a split instant, Hiro opened his mouth to protest but after a beat, he realised it was the truth.

 

He was indeed casual. He was so casual of this as if he was used to this. He pondered this feeling for a while and he was sure, he would feel the fear crawling into his heart once more. But this time, he didn’t feel anything remotely negative. Instead, it was there, in his mind, singing to him in a slow lullaby, calming himself down when the reality presented itself to him in the form of this Tadashi. And he took it with a stride as if this were to happen to everyone else. Hiro didn’t find the need to hide the truth and he didn’t want to conceal it either.

 

He was contempt with this.

 

He was glad with this.

 

Even though, it didn’t settle well at first, it actually gripped Hiro to the ground, made sure that he wouldn’t fall out and destroy himself. Finally, Hiro settled to shrugging and looked away from his friends’ stares and looked back to his work. He needed to find the solution for this once and for all. Silence lingered on for a minute before he heard Honey clearing her voice and everything else went on their way. He knew that they had so many other questions, but when they didn’t ask them, he couldn’t help but to feel relieved at that.

 

Somehow, his time with Tadashi felt really precious.

 

And he found himself cherishing it, as if he wouldn’t get to do it anymore. It made him feel slightly put down but he forced the thought away before deciding that he needed to focus. He couldn’t fall back now. Something was missing in here and he was sure, he would get it if only he could remove any thoughts revolving around the man who looked like his once dead brother.

 

His friends didn’t say anything else either.

 

* * *

 

 

“Gogo, for the last time, you can’t just drag me out from the lab whenever you think I need some ‘nutrition’,” Hiro whined subtly as he glared at the back of Gogo’s head, who was walking ahead of him. She just ignored him. Hiro was sure that she enjoyed watching Hiro suffer at what the outdoor had to offer him. This time, instead of the institute ground, she had dragged him off from the campus grounds and they ended up walking around the city. “Where are we going anyway?” he asked, annoyed slightly that she didn’t even tell him what they were going to get for food.

 

He had shut everyone else around as he worked. His friends made some flying jokes here and there but after six hours, even until he almost missed his lectures, he was forced by Gogo to accompany her to the city after his classes. He was slightly messed up in the head from doing everything at once, and somehow, deep inside, he was grateful that she knew when he needed a break. So for that, he didn’t completely have a grudge against her.

 

“There’s this bakery shop around the corner,” she said as she stopped and looked at the younger Hamada with a smile. “You’ll love it.”

 

“And you know that I’ll love it, _how_?” he asked, somehow trying to rile her up. She just rolled her eyes at him as she continued to walk, Hiro following her without sulking. No, he was not _sulking_. At all. Somehow, they passed an electronic shop, a hardware shop, Hiro noted. It sold all the electronic parts needed and Hiro realised it was one of the shops that was famous for their rare electronic parts. He stopped in front of the shop for a split second, tempted to go in but then he realised, he would stop by later when he got something to eat. As he passed the shop, something—or _someone_ caught his eyes.

 

Inside of the shop, exiting out with shades on his eyes and a plastic bag in his grip, it was a man. He was big, his built was big and maybe slightly plump but he was definitely not soft. Hiro stopped on his tracks as he stared at the man, who was taller and bigger than him. He was—was as if he had a whale gene in him. Hiro felt the spike of recognition inside of him as he continued to stare at the man. Just then, the man looked at him and for a moment, Hiro felt his breath leaving his lungs. The man slowly dragged his shades a bit from his eyes, his bright orange eyes met Hiro’s curious brown ones.  

 

“ _You_ …,” Hiro muttered once the face clicked in his mind. The man just stared at him a second longer before a cruel, twisted smile made way on his face and nodded at his direction. With that, the man turned around and walked away. Hiro was left confused for a moment. He knew that guy. He would remember those eyes anywhere, just because he remembered how angry they were when he wanted to murder Hiro for defeating him in the bot fight.

 

It was—

 

“Hiro?” Gogo’s voice cut him off as Hiro looked at her. “What’s wrong?” she asked as she looked ahead to where Hiro was staring. Hiro just looked away from her to look for the man again but when he couldn’t find him, he sighed. Something about that man doesn’t make sense and it certainly made him feel suspicious of him. Could he be the one? Hiro didn’t want to jump into conclusion, so he decided to leave at it was. Maybe he was here just to buy some parts for his bot.

 

He guessed that the man wouldn’t stop bot fighting just because Hiro won.

 

But why didn’t the man charge at him angrily? That didn’t make any sense to Hiro. If Hiro was in his place, he would literally chase after the boy who took away his money and destroyed his precious bot. Shrugging out from his thoughts, he decided that maybe, the man was just a bit off that night and didn’t mean any bodily harm to Hiro. “Uh, nothing,” Hiro said as he slowly looked back at Gogo. For a few seconds, she seemed sceptical but it faded away when he gave her an assuring smile.

 

With that, Gogo nodded and she continued her way to the bakery, Hiro following her reluctantly. Looking back at the pavement one last time, he felt the name rolling into his mind.

 

 _Junko_.

 

* * *

 

He didn’t know why he was doing this, really. He was walking down the streets, with Baymax. His friends didn’t accompany him though, so he was alone, well, not really alone, walking down the cool crisp dark night, with Baymax following him. The younger Hamada had went back home after that, quite startled a bit when he saw Tadashi hanging around the café, helping Cass with the customers. When Hiro just raised an eyebrow at him for his appearance, he just said he was done with the assignments finally and had wanted to visit Cass and Hiro.

 

“And you couldn’t have visited me at the lab because?” Hiro had enquired as he was forced to join Tadashi into serving the customers. Tadashi just grinned at him before he saw the corners of his lips faltering a bit.

 

“Your friends don’t really like me,” he said casually, as if it was something easy to say. Hiro wanted to laugh at that before he sighed. He couldn’t say that it wasn’t the truth. Maybe, the reality was just a bit falsified in some ways. Hiro just looked at Tadashi with a smile before he patted the man on his shoulders.

 

“They just need time to get used to you,” he had said as Tadashi looked at him and smiled. His smile was warm and it assured Hiro about his fears once more.

 

“I don’t really mind actually,” Tadashi said, his voice not really sounding regretful or sad. In fact, they sounded contempt and for a moment, Hiro had wanted to know why he sounded so cool. “As long as I’m around you, there’s nothing else I care more about.”

 

That answer really did take Hiro off guard. The younger Hamada tried to open his mouth to say something but at the end, his mind had drawn blank and he just closed his mouth shut. He didn’t know how long he was staring at Tadashi, but it didn’t really matter because now, Hiro wasn’t just somehow satisfied with that answer—he was confused as well. But he didn’t say anything else. He didn’t question either. He left it at that, quietening down and decided to stay that way unless someone started the conversation.

 

Tadashi didn’t.

 

So, Hiro didn’t either.

 

Once the café was closed for the day, Cass had insisted, once more, for Tadashi to stay for dinner. However, the man declined gently, saying he was needed elsewhere. Cass was slightly disappointed, it was clear and heavy in her eyes as she nodded at his words. Hiro felt bad for her as well, even though he knew he wanted the same thing. Tadashi smiled softly at her before promising that he would come by tomorrow. That definitely brought some light back into her eyes as she agreed to that. With that, Tadashi decided to head back home. However, before he could take a step further, Hiro stopped him, saying he would like to walk with Tadashi. The man just raised an eyebrow at that.

 

“I don’t need someone to walk me home, Hiro,” he said, his voice sounding amused. Hiro just rolled his eyes at the man.

 

“But I _want_ to,” he insisted. “Curios as to where you live.”

 

“So you can sneak into my house whenever you like?” Tadashi counterattacked, causing Hiro to chuckle at bit at the suggestion.

 

“Not until you suggested it,” Hiro said playfully, a grin forming on his lips as Tadashi sighed with a warm smile.

 

“How will _you_ get back home?” he asked. Hiro just shrugged at him carelessly.

 

“I’ll just walk? It can’t be that far,” Hiro said.

 

“ _Alone_?” Tadashi frowned at that before Hiro sighed.

 

“Well, yeah?”

 

“Not going to happen, kiddo,” Tadashi said as he crossed his arms against his chest. “If you want to walk me home, I need to know you’ll be safely back home too.”

 

Hiro looked at Tadashi with confusion and irritation suddenly colouring his eyes. “You’re kidding me, right? Tadashi—I’m _sixteen_!”

 

“ _Really_?” Tadashi asked, his voice even even though there was glimmer of amusement in his eyes. “I wouldn’t have guessed.”

 

Hiro remained quiet for a moment before he sighed. He really wanted to know where Tadashi lived. He wanted to know everything about this man and for Tadashi to know almost every inch of his life, Hiro wanted that same kind of exposure on the man’s life as well. So, after a few minutes of pondering, he finally decided on his decision. “If—If I bring Baymax with me, I can walk you home, right?”

 

Tadashi looked at the younger Hamada for a second before nodding. “He can protect you.”

 

“ _Yay_ ,” Hiro said dryly, not enjoying how this situation was declaring him a kid. Tadashi just raised an eyebrow at that before Hiro rolled his eyes. “I’ll go and get him. Wait up.”

 

With that, he walked away and jogged up the stairs to get Baymax. And that was how he ended up like this, so yes, he now remembered why he was walking down the street with Baymax on his right side and Tadashi on his left. The sky was glimmering with stars and the cool crisp air didn’t do any good for the younger Hamada’s cheerful mood. In fact, it heightened it. Tadashi glanced at Hiro before chuckling.

 

“Are you that excited to see where I live?” he asked as Hiro looked at him and grinned.

 

“Yeah,” Hiro said casually. They were walking down the pavement before turning to a sharp corner where Hiro recognised was the electronic shop. There weren’t many people there, in fact, he could literally say there were only four people, including them three on the streets right now. There weren’t any cars either. He wondered why this road was always lacking of people but he guessed maybe it was the ‘useless’ part of the city.  Just as they were about to take another step, a huge explosion once again filled the atmosphere. This time, it came from the electronic shop.

 

Hiro didn’t know what was happening next. He was thrown off about a few feet due to the impulsive force, even though he didn’t feel any heat. His eyes groggily opened to the scene in front of him, where he saw how the explosion once again rounded into a ball and dissipated by the invisible shields. Coming out from the round hole from the shop was the thief. Hiro quickly stood up, his feet shaking slightly before he stabilised himself. He could feel a heavy pain pounding at the back of his head, maybe due to the hit. Before he could take another step forward to the thief, a hand shot out and held onto his wrist.

 

Looking at the hand, he followed the arm until it landed on Tadashi, who was sitting next to him, looking a bit disoriented. He flicked his eyes at the younger Hamada before shaking his head. “You can’t, Hiro,” he said. Hiro felt irritation bubbling in his chest before he tried to yank his hand away.

 

“Let go, Tadashi! Baymax!” Hiro called out, Baymax already standing next to him. “Suit up and stop him before he gets away,” Hiro ordered. “Call the rest of Big Hero 6 along the way,” he continued. This was his chance to get something out of the thief, even if he didn’t get to catch him. He needed more clues and he needed more chances to take a look at the weapons. If he could just do that, then he could find a way to stop him once and for all. Baymax did as Hiro said and suit up, ready to aim his fist at the thief at any time after calling the rest of Big Hero 6.

 

“ _Hiro_ ,” Tadashi pleaded, his hand tightening around his wrist. “You aren’t protected, Hiro.”

 

“I am,” Hiro said desperately. “I’ll be fine, Tadashi.”

 

“Hiro,” Tadashi sighed as he slowly stood up, his hands never leaving his wrist. “Wait for your friends at least.”

 

“I _can’t_!” Hiro exclaimed before the anxiousness got to him. Before Tadashi could protest, Hiro pushed the man away, making him to stagger a bit and let Hiro’s wrist go. “Stay away, Tadashi.” With that said, Hiro took a stand next to Baymax and nodded his consent. Within seconds, the fist shot out from Baymax, twirling in air slightly before hitting the thief. The thief was left off guard for a moment as he tumbled and fell onto the road. Silence, deadly silence filled in before the thief stood up. Something in the way he held himself, Hiro knew he was pissed off.

 

Before anything was taken in consideration, the thief pulled out his weapons, the same ones that Hiro was trying to get his hands on and threw it towards him. However, before it reached him, Baymax shielded them away. “Hiro, this situation is getting highly dangerous,” Baymax said, his voice sounding slightly worried if not robotic. Hiro just waved the bot away from his analysis.

 

“Baymax, I need you to get close enough to that thief and get his weapons, or at least enough to analyse him,” Hiro said as he took a few steps back, allowing Baymax to look at him.

 

“But Hiro, you will not be prote—”

 

“I’ll be fine, just go!” Hiro said, looking back at the thief who finally took the initiative to walk towards Hiro. “ _Now_!” Baymax didn’t need a third order as he left Hiro’s side and ran to the thief, trying to get a chance to analyse him.

 

“Hiro,” Tadashi finally grabbed onto Hiro’s shoulders and pulled him backwards. “We have to leave now.”

 

“Tadashi!” Hiro yelled out as he turned around for a moment and pushed the man away, harder this time as he fell onto the ground. “Stay _away_ ,” Hiro hissed out. “Your life is in danger. Stay away!”

 

“And yours is not?” Tadashi spat out, his eyebrows furrowed deep. Hiro just groaned a bit before he decided to ignore the man and look back at what was happening. Baymax was trying his best to avoid the thief’s cuts and blows meanwhile the thief was trying to avoid Baymax’s punches. Hiro quickly dug out what seemed like Honey Lemon’s mystery balls and sighed. He needed the thief to stay at one place and he did modified this just a few hours ago due to boredom after not being able to figure out the answer to his theory. With that, he went closer to thief, carefully and aimed the ball at the man’s feet. Before the thief could do anything, Hiro threw the balls at his feet, causing the balls to explode and mutate into goo and stick itself around the thief’s feet.

 

With that, the thief was immobilised. This caused the thief to have a harder time avoiding Baymax. “Scan him now, Baymax!” Hiro yelled out as Baymax did what Hiro said. However, that didn’t stop the thief from showing his anger and before Hiro knew it, the man took out his electric-fused knife and threw it at Hiro. The knife came hurling straight towards Hiro and Baymax was too slow to move into the view to protect the young genius.

 

The younger Hamada didn’t even have time to move away either as the knife inched closer and closer to his abdomen. Hiro felt his heart stopping and the breath leaving his lungs. His eyes closed and the world slowed down in motion as he waited for the pain to scurf through him like lightning. Silence echoed a bit before a sickening sound of squish was heard as the knife sliced through flesh.

 

However, the pain didn’t come.

 

Hiro blinked open his eyes a bit when he realised what had happened. At this moment of relapse, the thief pushed Baymax away and pressed down a button on his arm. He went stuttering a bit before his whole body disappeared into the night, leaving no evidence that he was here except the weapons lying around him and that now hardening goo. Hiro’s eyes, however was trained on the falling body in front of him. The person who took the hit wasn’t Hiro.

 

It was—

 

“ _Tadashi_!” Hiro yelled out as the man fell down to the floor helplessly on his back. Hiro saw the blood pooling out from his abdomen, the knife lodged in deep. Tadashi’s eyes trained back to Hiro for a moment as he saw the pain flashing through those warm brown eyes. “Tadashi,” Hiro said bitterly and in disbelief as he dropped to his knees next to the man. Tadashi touched his injury before wincing, his breath coming out in short pants. “Tadashi,” Hiro continued to say out loud before looking at Baymax. “Ambulance, _now_!”

 

Baymax didn’t really wait for Hiro’s command and did just as that. Hiro felt the fear once again crawling into his chest, the expected thoughts of losing someone dear to him reliving and burning in his mind. This was not how things were supposed to be. He felt a cold hand touching his arm as he looked at the man, wincing at how his blood wasn’t stopping. It was making a mess and Hiro didn’t like this. He felt like this was the time where he would wake up from this weird twisted dream. Tears gathered in his eyes as the sob threatened to take over, the thief momentarily forgotten.

 

“I— _I’ll_ ,” Tadashi tried to speak but Hiro just shook his head.

 

“Don’t, don’t speak, stupid,” Hiro hissed out, in what was anger and disappointment. Fear was clouding his mind as he heard the distant yelling of his friends who had just arrived at the crime scene. He couldn’t believe it. This—this wasn’t going to happen again. He couldn’t lose him too. Tadashi tried to smile, somehow trying to comfort Hiro but it just came out pained. Hiro winced at him before the tears streamed down his cheeks.

 

The ambulance came in short seconds after the call was made. Maybe even three minutes or so, and Hiro wondered how Tadashi had stayed strong. Hiro didn’t know what to do as the nurses and men that came out from the white ambulance immediately pulled Hiro away from Tadashi. Hiro began to kick and scream when he realised he was beginning to separate away from Tadashi. He couldn’t leave him now. His mind didn’t register that they were trying to help. He watched how the man was placed in a stretcher and was carried into the ambulance.

 

“Hiro, he’s going to be fine,” a voice said but Hiro was too numb to speak or say anything else. He felt the world coming to a stop. Was this happening again? Was he about to lose the only anchor in his life once more to the cruel reality? He felt angry at himself as well. If he hadn’t, if he had just _listened_ to Tadashi, maybe this wouldn’t have happened.

 

He had already lost someone who had meant a lot in his life once. He had already witnessed the death of his Tadashi once. He _couldn’t_ go through this again. He didn’t want to live in this world knowing he would only have a few moments with the person he loved before they died. He didn’t want the history to always repeat itself. It left something cold and metallic inside of him every time they died. And now, this. The flashes of his Tadashi running into the fire came back like flickering lights in his mind and he found himself trying hard to breath. The panic surged into him as if it was trying to cut off his logic. He couldn’t think. His heart beat loudly against his ears.

 

His ears began to ring loudly and his mind swirled into complete blackness. Without even registering what was happening next, Hiro fell to the ground lifelessly. His mind shutting down from too much pressure. He only heard the distant shouting of his name before it clogged his ears as well.

 

Now, the only thing calming him down was the gentle hum of his name in his mind.

 

 _Tadashi_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...welllll....uh...ta-da? //hidesbehindCaptainAmericandIronMan// I know, I know, but hey! I did say that I was planning something big, didn't I? But it made me sad slightly to hurt--well, keep on hurting Hiro and Tadashi like this. However, it had to be done for the sake of the story! Anyways, I hope you guys liked this chapter! I, once again, think I failed at the fighting scene because, ahk, I have no idea why. Therefore, do forgive me about that. //sighs// Nether the less, thank you for all the comments, the kudos, the reads and subscriptions! It really made my day. So, anyways, don't forget to comment below at the end of this chapter to let me know what you guys think! :DD Till' the next chappie~!


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Not mine~
> 
> A/N: _Rightttt_...now you have to read this before proceeding, alright? There is a bunch of medical mumbo jumbo in this chapter that I'm not even remotely sure if it's right. I mean, I tried Googling and I did take Biology and my mom was a medical trained worker--but, it still remains a bit blurry here. And moreover, this setting is like in the future, so I guess medicine would've progressed a hell lot like the beginning and successful procedure of cell regeneration of tissues. Maybe. //shrugs// I read too much StarTrek...so...the medicine advancement might've came from there...so anyways, that's why his injuries (you'll know when you read this) takes a shorter time to heal compared to the time we take to recover in this present. Hah...ahaha--ignoring that fact though, hope you guys enjoy this chappie~!
> 
>  _If you thought I’d leave, then you were wrong, Cause’ I won’t stop holding on_ – _Emergency_ (Paramore)

 

 

 

It was quiet. All around him, in his mind, in his heart, everywhere—it was _quiet_. The blankness—the whiteness, it was slowly fading away and suddenly a bright—almost yellow like light blinded his vision before it turned black. All these colours caused him to stir slightly, trying to grasp onto some reality. Forcing his eyelids to open, the assaulting brightness took him by surprise as he let out a croaky gasp. He felt his body was like on fire, his mind starting to pain from the beginning of thinking. His sense of smell picked up the cleanliness and freshness of the atmosphere, mixed with the smell of medicine and antibiotics. The bleached walls and ceilings finally emerged into his view before he licked his lips.

 

The confusion settled deep inside of him. He was so unsure of himself. For a fleeting moment, he didn’t know where he was or even _who_ he was. He just wanted to close his eyes and let the darkness slip him back into an endless stream of restlessness. “ _Hiro_.”

 

Opening his eyes once more, he looked at where the voice came from. “Hiro, here,” the voice said as Hiro squinted his eyes and his blurry gaze settled on a man. He was wearing a coat and in his grasp were a clipboard and a pen. The man smiled warmly at him before looking down on his clipboard. “Hiro Hamada, right?” he asked gently, letting the younger Hamada to adjust to the question and the sudden appearance of the man. The confusion still settled deep inside of him for a moment. Who was this man in front of him? Was that his name?

 

He didn’t know what to think.

 

“ _What_?” he asked. The man looked at him for a moment before he frowned a bit. Looking back to the clipboard, he jotted something down before the pen clicked off and was shoved into one of the pockets the coat had. Hiro felt slight fear crawling into him as the man approached. “Who are you?” he asked again as the man sighed softly and before Hiro knew it, he touched his forehead.

 

“Hiro, you are Hiro Hamada, sixteen this year,” the man said slowly as he looked into the boy’s eyes. “Do you remember yourself?”

 

Silence took in a minute before he felt the confusion slipping away from his mind. Hiro blinked a few times when he felt the room spinning. A loud ringing noise took over and he felt irritated at that. Furrowing his eyebrows deep, he tried to remember what was going on. Just then, the flashes of memories crawled into his mind and started to flicker past his vision. The huge pain that accompanied it almost made Hiro groan. Everything made sense and something else didn’t. He felt the frequent events coming and going into his mind so fast that he had hard time breathing.

 

He didn’t know he had ended up gasping for air.

 

“Breathe, Hiro, carefully,” the man hushed him gently as Hiro found himself doing just that. Taking a deep breath and then letting it go.

 

 _Tadashi_.

 

The word inside his mind rang loudly before the image, the fresh image of blood, knife, fire, and Tadashi, on the ground, looking like he could die any minute took Hiro off guard. His eyes snapped wide open and a startling gasp made way through his lips. That was right—he saw _him_ —he saw Tadashi _dying_. He saw his brother walking into the fire and now, this Tadashi fell in front of his eyes with blood, a lot of _blood_ —was that an indication he wouldn’t make it?

 

“Hiro, Hiro, calm down,” the man once again commanded him gently. “You’ll end up in panic attack if you continue this way. Calm down. Take a deep breath—”

 

“I need to see Tadashi,” Hiro suddenly said as he grabbed onto the man’s hand.

 

“Hiro,” a soft voice echoed in the room as Hiro snapped away from the man and around him. He saw his friends, staring at him, some with relief and some with anxiousness. They were looking really worried though and Hiro was certain, that some amount of guilt wormed way inside his heart before it was slammed shut with the need to see Tadashi alive. Looking back at the man, he finally noticed the nametag hanging on the coat, the white coat.

 

“Doctor Teo?” he asked as the man smiled and nodded. “Tadashi, how is he? I need to see him. Is he—is he okay? I need to see him!”

 

“Hiro,” the doctor stated carefully, catching his attention. “Do you remember anything?”

 

“I need to see Tadashi, didn’t you listen to me?” Hiro exclaimed, the worry growing inside of him. “I need to see him!”

 

“Hiro, calm down,” the doctor said once more. “You’ve been unconscious for almost nine hours. We need to check you for any signs that anything is damaged.”

 

“I’m _fine_ ,” Hiro hissed out. His vision blurred a bit before he shook his head slightly. “I just— _need_ to see him,” he said, his voice hoarse and the fear moulded with desperation.

 

A hand was placed on his shoulder before it was squeezed tight. “He’s going to be fine, Hiro,” the man said. “The knife wasn’t that big as we expected and it didn’t hit any vitals, he should be fine. He’s stabilising at the moment.”

 

Hiro looked at the man, his eyes searching his face for a moment. His mouth went dry all of a sudden, and relief, immense relief washed over him. “He’s going to be fine?” Hiro asked, his voice still sounding scratchy and slightly dead. The doctor sighed a bit before nodding.

 

“Hiro, I’m breaking a patient’s confidentiality with you when I’m speaking about Tadashi’s condition, so listen carefully because I’m only saying this once. Tadashi’s lucky. He’s really lucky that the knife didn’t lodge itself that deep or hit anything vital. He’s in ICU for the extra care and to monitor his progress. We managed to repair the tissues through regeneration of cells but otherwise, it’s all up to him on how he recovers,” the doctor concluded after a while. Hiro just stared at him, trying to get the information in before he nods dumbly, the numbing affect took over in his mind. “We need you to get checked now, Hiro. Be strong.”

 

Hiro just agreed, not even verbally. Everything else was a blur as he relished on the thought that Tadashi was going to be fine.

 

It didn’t take him long for the physical examination to conclude that he was fine and then before he could properly recover from his thoughts, the police had come into his view to ask about the thief and the occurrence around. Hiro wasn’t in the mood of cooperating and neither was his friends, but they answered as best as they could. It turned out that for once, the street security cameras were useful and had managed to catch the footage. Half a footage but footage nether the less. Hiro just let the information glide through his mind as he walked around the hospital aimlessly, following the back of his friends who were trying to locate Tadashi’s room. Not all of them were allowed to go in at once, so they decided to let Fred and Hiro go in first.

 

The room was bleached white and the sounds of the heart monitor beeping loudly in this confined space made Hiro’s throat clench. They didn’t dare to walk closer to the man’s bed, both paralysed by the sight in front of them. It was frightening to see. Hiro couldn’t bear to look at his brother’s look-alike sleeping on that bed, IV tubes on his arm, and the oxygen mask on his face, just keeping him looking as if he couldn’t make it. Fear once again quivered in his chest and Hiro felt the tears rising in his eyes. He couldn’t stay _strong_ , he pondered before he took a few cautious steps backwards before he turned around and walked out of the room.

 

 “Hiro?” Fred questioned in silence, his voice barely a whisper as Hiro looked away from the man and to him, shaking his head.

 

“I—I can’t,” he croaked out before he ran out. Gogo was the first person Hiro saw before he shook his head, making her to nod her head in slight understanding. With that, Hiro walked away, letting his feet to carry him away from the scene. He felt as if someone had deliberately tried to murder him from the inside, over and over again. He had to witness this scene—the _scene_ of him falling to the ground, blood pooling around him and wetting his shirt, it was _terrible_. It was traumatic and the younger Hamada didn’t think he would recover from the images. The cold clamp hand trying to grasp his in pain, Hiro felt a shiver running down his spine as he tore his attention from the images.

 

He had let this Tadashi get too close to him.

 

A sharp pang went through his heart and the anxiousness came back full on as he tried to breathe in.

 

He had let this Tadashi see everything inside of him. He had let this man know that he needed someone like his brother and let this Tadashi take over that role—even if it was momentarily. He had let him come too close to him, and now, Hiro had to watch him almost die because of his stupidity. This couldn’t go on. He shouldn’t let someone else be in danger just because he was acting reckless and dumb. Anger, it was pounding inside his heart loudly as he yelled loudly in his head.

 

He had to get away, he had to get away from Tadashi.

 

The red, the pitch dark red under the streetlights made him gag. The blood was a reminder that he had caused this. He had caused this man to be where he was now. He had no right to go near him again. It was a curse, he was a curse. He would stay away from Tadashi from now on.

 

 _He needed to stay away_.

 

* * *

 

 

News of the thief was broadcasted for the past one week after the incident and there were no more sights of him. The police said they were trying their best to investigate the clues but Hiro doubted they would find anymore leads when he, himself, couldn’t do anything about it. He didn’t visit Tadashi after that, only getting updates from his friends via Baymax, but otherwise, Hiro was adamant about staying away from Tadashi.

 

Sure, he should have the decency to actually see him, but he was scared.

 

It shook him to the core that he had to witness such scenes. He didn’t want to anymore.

 

So, if he stayed away from the man, it would make their lives much easier.

 

Hiro knew that Tadashi had asked about him, the man had woken up after forty-eight hours. The doctor finally proclaimed that he was going to be fine and he was healing well. He should recover in the next three weeks, two weeks at home. Hiro just smiled at that, knowing that the man was doing fine. It was more than enough for the younger Hamada for now. He didn’t need this man in his life anymore. He didn’t want to watch another Tadashi dying because he wanted to try and save someone.

 

It was too noble for someone like Hiro to understand.

 

And therefore, Hiro spent his days recovering at home from the momentary shock before he bounced back up and shut himself out. Cass heard about the news and she was not happy about it. She went and visited him often but she was cross with Hiro when he refused to even say hi. He told her that the reason Tadashi got hurt was because of him. She tried to change his mind, she tried to say that it wasn’t his fault, but the reality was twisted that way and it continued to remind Hiro that yes, this was _his_ fault and he should just stay away from endangering anyone else.

 

Cass didn’t try to persuade him anymore, instead, she kept Hiro posted as well of his condition even though the younger Hamada didn’t ask. Hiro would leave early in the morning to the institute and try to either finish up his last minute assignments or trying to manipulate electricity to a weapon. But his mind, every single time, would turn back to the dark route. The route that lead him to harm Tadashi, this Tadashi, in his own ways. Shaking his head from his thoughts, he continued on tweaking the machinery on his desk and tried to keep the calculation in his head rolling, just so he could think about nothing else.

 

His friends tried to convince him that Tadashi had wanted to at least see him but Hiro would just swiftly change the subject and before they knew it, they were on a different topic. Gogo was the first one to let Hiro know that he was being a _coward_. Hiro didn’t even dignify that accusation with an answer and just glared at her. She didn’t understand what he was going through. She didn’t know the feelings inside. It was as if someone was ripping a duct tape right from his skin, making him to see blinding dark pain before the sour dull ache stayed on it. He shrugged her off every time and at the end, Gogo just sighed and let it go.

 

Today, working inside his room and looking through the security footage once more, he heard the door open widely. Looking at the door, he frowned slightly when he saw his friends, looking at him with a knowing look before they sauntered into his room even when he didn’t invite them in yet. “Uh, what’s going on?” Hiro asked as he raised an eyebrow. Gogo walked over to Hiro’s chair and twirled him around until he was facing them.

 

“We need to talk,” she said tightly and her eyes narrowing at each word. Hiro just sighed and leaned into his chair, knowing what this conversation was about. Crossing his arms against his chest, he waited for the conversation to start. After a beat of silence and nobody else spoke, Hiro just rolled his eyes at them.

 

“So, I have to start?” he asked, sounding as if he didn’t care. And truthfully, he didn’t. He didn’t want to care anymore.

 

“Hiro,” Honey Lemon started as she sighed, a soft smile on her face. “He’s looking for you.”

 

“He’ll be fine,” Hiro said. “Before me, he’s always been fine so he can be fine now too.”

 

Gogo just sighed annoyed. “Hiro,” she said. “He wants to see you.”

 

Hiro just raised an eyebrow. “Didn’t you hear me? I said he’ll be fine without me. He’ll be even better without me,” he said. “I mean, I caused him this in the first place, if you guys didn’t know.”

 

“It wasn’t your fault,” Wasabi said. “Hiro, it _wasn’t_ your fault.”

 

“And how can you be sure?” Hiro exclaimed as the fear finally rung through his words. “How can any of you be so _sure_ that it isn’t my fault? You didn’t see him falling down in front of your eyes. You didn’t see the pain in his eyes. You weren’t there,” Hiro hissed out as he looked away. “So, don’t tell it’s not my fault. It is and it’s always been _my_ fault.”

 

Silence filled the room for a moment before Fred shook his head. “Hiro, my man,” he started. “You need to know—”

 

“I don’t want to know _anything_ ,” Hiro cut him off before he could continue.

 

“Hiro,” Gogo said exasperatedly. “You need to listen. Tadashi doesn’t blame you for this. He said it was his choice. He—he needs to see you, Hiro,” she said, her voice clouding something.

 

“He doesn’t need to see me,” Hiro said before he shook his head. “I’m fine without him, he’ll be even better without me.” His voice was now lower an octave and the darkness of the truth washed into his words. “He would be fine if he didn’t meet me,” Hiro continued as he felt the tiredness and the restlessness of this past one week dragging him down. Honey Lemon took a step forward before she looked at the younger Hamada in the eyes.

 

“Hiro, there’s something you need to know about Tadashi,” she said carefully. “He’s—”

 

“I don’t want to know anything about him so drop it,” Hiro snapped as she closed her mouth, the words hanging in the air discontinued. “I don’t want to know anything about him from now on.”

 

“But Hiro,” Wasabi tried to protest, his eyes wide and shimmering with truth that Hiro didn’t want to know.

 

“ _No_ ,” the younger Hamada said stubbornly. “I don’t want to know.”

 

Gogo finally looked away from Hiro and to her friends, shaking her head at them. Hiro didn’t know what that meant but even if there was a slight dash of curiosity to what they were about to say, he decided to squish it inside. It didn’t matter anymore. “We’ll leave now then,” she said slowly as Hiro nodded stiffly. “But Hiro, he’s going home tomorrow, so at least see him once.” She rustled into her jacket pocket for a moment before she took out a piece of paper with writings on it. “This is the address. Just go and see him at least once. There’s something you need to know.”

 

With that, she placed the paper on his desk and walked out of his room, his friends patting on his shoulder before they walked out too. Hiro was left to immerse himself in this loneliness and disappointment, in himself and in this Tadashi. He promised himself he wouldn’t see him and that was what he was going to do. Turning around facing his desk, he saw the letter and for a moment, he wanted to look at it and prepare himself to meet with Tadashi. But before he could process the information, he shook his head off it.

 

He didn’t want any part of that man.

 

He will _not go_.

 

No matter how much he wanted to.

 

* * *

 

He was _here_.

 

He sighed loudly to himself as he stood in front of the door. He couldn’t believe it. He tried to ignore the address on his desk, screaming and yelling at him to take it throughout the entire day and night. By the time it was eight in the evening next day, he found himself no longer being able to hold back the want to see him. He ended up grabbing his blue worn-out hoodie and the address, heading out the door. He didn’t tell Cass where he was going, just a short ‘ _I’m going out_ ’and with that he dashed out of the house. He took a cab and despite the logic inside of him protesting that he shouldn’t do this, he ended up here, outside of the man’s house, sighing loudly to himself once more.

 

He could still turn back around and walk away. He could just turn back and start running away. He could do it. He didn’t have to do this. But the slight tremors in his heart needed him to do this. Like it was calling him to do this because there was something that didn’t fit in properly inside this enigma he called life. His friends had wanted to say something yesterday about Tadashi. They were desperate to make Hiro listen but he just waved them off. But now, the curiosity came back and haunted him.

 

It _wanted_ to be found out.

 

Hiro could deny it and say that he didn’t want to do this, but he’d be lying if he said that he didn’t _need_ to do this. He needed to see this man’s face once more and why—he wasn’t so sure. From day one, from the moment he had seen this man, a connection was there. It was a bare—small connection but it was there. As if Hiro could identify him in a huge crowd. Hiro could feel the familiarity washing inside of him and he ended up somehow thinking about what Gogo said about the Hamada vibe. As much as he tried to remove the evidence that this was his once-dead brother, his illogical side tried to tell him that it was alright to hope.

 

But he didn’t want to hope.

 

He was a scientist somehow.

 

He needed data and he needed logic to solve a problem.

 

Right now, it wasn’t working.

 

He gripped his hands tightly into a ball before he inched closer to the door, his eyes seemingly glared at the old-fashioned door. He should knock any minute now, he said to himself as he took a deep breath and raised his hand. Slowly, he neared his hand to the door and counted the seconds. Nervousness flooded deep inside and fear clogged his brain before he closed his eyes shut and gave a loud knock before freezing.

 

Seconds passed and Hiro realised nobody opened the door. Opening his eyes, he looked at the closed door and frowned. Looking away, he took a glance around him and sighed. He was being a coward, he muttered darkly in his mind. This could be like a closure, he tried to persuade himself. A closure he needed before moving on with his life. With that thought in mind, he finally knocked on the door a few more times, trying to get anybody to open the door—if anyone was home in the first place. A loud crash was heard from inside before a muffled voice yelled out that he was on his way. Hiro took a step back and waited for someone to open the door, his heart pounding loudly against his chest.

 

“I’m sorry,” the man said as he opened the door widely, an apologetic look on his face. Hiro’s eyes widened when he saw the person standing in front of him. The man, however, didn’t look fazed and smiled warmly. “Hiro,” he said before he stepped inside, letting the younger Hamada in. “Come in!”

 

“D-Doctor _Teo_?” Hiro called out as his voice sounded shocked to himself. The man just smiled before nodding. “What—you _live_ here?” he asked before he looked back at the piece of paper in his hand, wondering if he made a mistake somewhere. The man just chuckled before nodding once more.

 

“I do,” he said. Hiro looked back at the doctor and shook his head, an apologetic smile on the younger Hamada’s face.

 

“Sorry, I thought this was—”

 

“This is,” the man cut him off. “It’s where Tadashi lives too. I’m his guardian.”

 

“ _Guardian_?” Hiro questioned as he felt the confusion seeping in. Seconds ticked on before the man sighed and gestured Hiro to come in.

 

“Well, come on in,” the man ushered. “You don’t want to catch a cold staying out all night outside, do you?” he chided gently as Hiro reluctantly walked in. Once the door was closed, the man brought him up the stairs until they were at the living room. Hiro shuffled on his foot nervously as he looked at the doctor, buzzing about until he found two cups. “Do you like tea?”

 

“Uh, yeah, sure,” Hiro said awkwardly as he tried to process the information in his head. The man nodded before going on to make the tea, a type of silence washing in as Hiro felt himself wondering what in the world he was doing here. “Uhm, is Tadashi home yet?” he asked, his voice slightly shaky. The man chuckled before he looked at Hiro and smiled.

 

“Yes,” he said. “In his room. Do you want me to bring the tea there then?” he asked, his accent sounding slightly British. Hiro didn’t want to ponder on that and nodded, feeling nervous once more. The man smiled once again before he let the kettle of water to boil and gestured Hiro to follow him. “Up the stairs and the third door to your right,” the man said as he pointed to the stairs. Hiro gently thanked the man before he stiffly took the stairs.

 

He felt the wariness and cautiousness taking over as he pictured the worst case scenario of Tadashi’s condition. He didn’t want to keep his hopes up, neither did he wanted to keep any thoughts in his mind. Clearing his mind, he finally reached the room door, sighing a bit. It was now or never. With any amount of dignity and courage left inside of him, Hiro knocked on the room door. It didn’t take long before he heard a muffled ‘ _come in_ ’ from inside. Gulping to drown the anxiousness, he opened the door and peeked his head in.

 

Immediately, he was greeted with Tadashi, sitting on his bed and sighing before the man looked at him. Seconds passed as their eyes met and they stayed transfixed looking at each other. After a beat, Tadashi broke his passiveness and smiled widely, his eyes filling with the warmth Hiro loved so much. “Hiro,” he said, his voice clearly sounded happy. “Come in.”

 

Hiro cautiously walked in before he closed the door, not really daring himself to leave the door and walk closer to the man.  Silence took over for a moment as Hiro shuffled from one foot to the other, his eyes gliding over Tadashi as the man kept silent, just watching the younger Hamada. The thickening silence didn’t dissipate even when the man sighed, catching Hiro’s attention. “You didn’t visit me,” he said softly, as if he didn’t want to break this trance between them. Hiro felt his breath hitching for a moment before he closed his eyes, the staggering images of Tadashi lying on the ground with a pool of blood around him, soaking his shirt from inside—his cold sweaty hands touching Hiro’s—that painful voice, it bubbled anger inside of him.

 

He had the _nerve_ to ask him why he didn’t visit?

 

He had the nerve to look like—like that on the bed and ask why he didn’t _visit_?

 

His lips clamped tight and it formed a thin line, frustration edged in his body movements and anger clearly fuelled his mind. He refused to meet Tadashi’s eyes as he looked to the ground, his self-preservation slowly disappearing, threatening him with loss of control. “Hiro, if you’re blaming yourself for this, you should know—”

 

“It _is_ my fault,” Hiro suddenly said, causing the man to stop in his tracks. His shoulders quivered a bit as the short shots of fear finally wound itself around him inside tightly. “ _It is_.”

 

“Hiro, you know that it isn’t—”

 

“It _is_ ,” Hiro hissed out, his voice coming out hard. “I—I should have never let you get too close to me.” He heard Tadashi shuffling on his bed but with that, nothing was exchanged for a few seconds before Hiro sighed, shagging his shoulders against the door as he lolled his head to look at the man in the eyes. It felt heavy, this guilt that was covering every inch of his life. This _fear_? It was eating him from within and for once, Hiro wished that it would just quickly leave him as an empty core so he couldn’t feel anymore.

 

Logic—he snorted. Logically, Hiro would’ve ended this in first hand. He would’ve ended this—whatever this was between them and move on with his life. He didn’t have to have another attachment, but when this man sauntered in his life as if he knew Hiro, he couldn’t help but to believe. _Believe_ , even if he wasn’t used to the concept, but believe that this man could make him forget—even if it was for a while.

 

And for a moment, he believed, that this man was forever.

 

Until reality dumped a bucket full of cold ice water on his face.

 

If anything, even this Tadashi wasn’t immortal.

 

He would die one day and then what?

 

Hiro wasn’t sure if he could watch this again.

 

 _No_ —

 

He knew he couldn’t go through this again.

 

This—whatever this was—was the last straw for him. He needed to end this and move on. There was only one Tadashi and that man died when he walked into the fire on his own record. But why, _why_ was it that his heart quivered in disappointment when he thought about it? The longing that had wormed way in his heart took him by surprise and he had underestimated at how much he needed to see this Tadashi.

 

Reality check didn’t get him anywhere.

 

There he was, standing inside of Tadashi’s room, waiting for something to happen.

 

 _Anything_ to happen, so he could just decide to say what he needed to say and leave.

 

But Tadashi didn’t. Instead, he just stared at the younger Hamada, not opening his mouth. Hiro felt the waves of uncertainty crashing around inside him. “Do you _regret_ it then?”

 

The question snapped Hiro out of his thoughts as he looked at the man. Tadashi looked so serious, his lips pinched tight and his eyebrows furrowed deep. The happiness from before, that carefree smile, it disappeared leaving no trace behind. “Do you regret ever meeting me?” he asked, his voice masking anything and everything between them. Bubbling acidic anger took surface as Hiro chuckled dryly, hurt flashed into his mind.

 

“That’s _not_ fair,” Hiro bit out. “That’s not a fair question.”

 

“Is it?” Tadashi attacked as dryly. “News flash, Hiro; Nothing ever is. So tell me, did you regret meeting me?”

 

“No, they aren’t,” Hiro said with a sigh, his anger pulsing through each word. “I—I wish I did,” Hiro said carefully, trying to keep himself from drowning into this. Looking at the man finally in the eyes, Hiro said, “I want to regret it.” He didn’t miss the fleeting hurt in the man’s eyes but he stood his ground. He didn’t want to waver anymore. He would get this over with. “You did it again.”

 

Tadashi’s eyes became darker as his lips tightened once more. “Did what?”

 

“You know exactly _what_!” Hiro exclaimed as he leaned against the door deeper, as if he tried to melt into the wood. “You did it again, you risked your life again for me!”

 

“Is that why you didn’t visit me?” Tadashi asked, his voice not revealing anything and sounding even. “Is that your reason why I didn’t see you for these past days while I was in the hospital? Because I risked my life for you and you decided to stop seeing me?” Hiro wasn’t imagining this time, he saw the fleeting hurt in his eyes and they were staying there.

 

“ _Yes_ ,” Hiro hissed out, causing a stunned silence to fill the room. Hiro finally took a step forward from the door as he sighed. “Yes, Tadashi. I want to stop this because of that. Because you jumped again in line of fire and almost killed yourself. For someone you _just_ met.”

 

“You’re being illogical,” Tadashi bit out bitterly. “For a genius, you’re strangely dense. Can’t you see that I don’t regret what I did?”

 

“And that’s exactly why it’s gotten me so shaken up!” Hiro yelled, finally letting his voice reach the peak. “You— _why_ did you do it? Why did you hurt yourself again for me? Why did you decide to do this now?”

 

“I told you that you were important to me, Hiro,” Tadashi’s voice sounded tight but there was an undeniable amount of angst in them. “You _are_ important to me.”

 

“ _Hah_ ,” Hiro said out dryly and bitterly at the same time, his eyes becoming blurry a bit. “Did you know I visited you that day? When you were in ICU, I visited you. You looked awful, with that IV tube in your arm and that oxygen mask on your mouth. I—You looked as good as _dead_ to me and—you should know that this is a bad trigger to me.”

 

Tadashi’s eyes narrowed a bit. “A bad trigger?”

 

“My Tadashi died trying to save some man like Callaghan,” Hiro stressed out. “And then now, you—you’re saving me and at the same time you’re promising to leave me. I can’t deal with this anymore. I told you that day that I can’t have another person in my life just for them to die in front of my eyes.” Silence took over before Hiro took a deep breath. “You said I’m important to you, but you just met me. _Why_ am I important to you?”

 

“You just _are_ , okay?” Tadashi finally exclaimed, frustration seeping in his body gesture as he finally sighed and let his hands to press against his stomach. “I can’t let you die. I won’t let you die even if I have to die. You are important to me, Hiro. I don’t care what you say, it won’t stop me from acting like this again in the future.”

 

“You’re selfish!” Hiro yelled out, anger taking over once more at the insensitive words this man said. “You’re such a selfish, insensitive jerk. I’m not that important to be saving over. If I die, I die, Tadashi.”

 

“ _Don’t_ say things like that, Hiro,” Tadashi growled out.

 

“Why? Because they are the truth,” Hiro bit out. “When I die, at least I’m not alone! My brother will be waiting for me. My parents will be waiting for me.”

 

“And what about the rest of us, huh?” Tadashi counterattacked. “What about Aunt Cass? What about your friends? You’re the selfish one here, Hiro. What about me?”

 

“What _about_ you?” Hiro asked, his voice clearly showing frustration. “You are just someone who looks like my dead brother! That’s why in the first place I agreed to approach you. If you aren’t, I wouldn’t even think of reciprocating this thing we have here.”

 

“Dead brother,” Tadashi muttered bitterly. “ _Dead brother_. That’s all I hear from you, Hiro. I get it, he died. He’s gone. I look like him. I mean a lot to you because I look like him. But you clearly can’t use that as an excuse every single time I ended up making you feel uncomfortable!”

 

“Don’t say something like that so easily,” Hiro hissed out, his voice dripping venom. “You haven’t even met him! You don’t know him! So, don’t just assume things!”

 

“Oh but I do know him!” Tadashi yelled. “I know him better than you do, Hiro. I know what I’m talking about.”

 

“ _Shut up_ ,” Hiro said. “You don’t! You’re just someone who looks like him. If you think you know him just because of that—you can shove your knowing and logic down a hole. I don’t care anymore. Don’t come near me. Your life is not worth to be risking for someone like me!”

 

“And why couldn’t it be you? It’s logical that I would risk my life for you!”

 

“That makes no sense! I’m just this pitiful boy who’s clearly has some infatuation for his brother and you’re showing your sympathy about it in your own way. I’m not blind. You think I don’t see the hurt in your eyes every time I cry over him? You think I don’t see these weird looks you give me whenever I try to talk about him? You act as if I’m fragile. I’m _not_. Stay away from me!”

 

“You have zero, _zero_ , idea of what you’re implying,” Tadashi suddenly said, his voice hard. Hiro stopped dead track as he realised how cold the voice was. “Hiro, you have zero idea what you’re talking about. I can risk my life if I wanted to, alright? It’s my life and you have no right to say it otherwise.” After a breath, he said, “ _I’m sorry_ , okay? If that’s what it takes to solve this thing between us, I’m sorry! I’m sorry that I had to come into your life and just decided to stick. I’m sorry that I caused you so much pain all these times. I’m sorry that I hurt you even more when really, I just wanted to protect you. Hiro—I can’t do this anymore either.”

 

His voice softened at the end as Tadashi sighed and shook his head. Hiro looked at him for a minute as he tried to sink the speech in. The last sentence took the younger Hamada off guard. He couldn’t do what anymore? Why did Tadashi look so defeated?  “What—what are you talking about?” he asked, his voice suddenly sounding slightly timid, his fear crawling and dying at his throat and slowly replacing it with confusion. Tadashi looked away for a moment before he shook his head once more. Hiro could see that his hands were trembling as he tried to curl them into a ball. “Tadashi— _what_ are you talking about?” Hiro demanded, something about this expression on this man’s face made him feel anxious.

 

“Hiro,” his voice came out regretful but at the same time, there was a wash of relief, as if he was ready to let some kind of truth to spill out. “You tell me Hiro,” he said softly as he looked at the younger Hamada in his eyes and Hiro was taken aback at the recognition he found in them. “Which older brother wouldn’t want to protect his baby brother from harm’s way?”

 

Dread silence took over as Hiro’s mind went completely blank, the sentence taking over his whole body. His heart started to thump louder and louder, a sudden image of everything that had happened all these while took over in a painful strike. He felt his throat going dry and his eyes widening at the sentence. “ _W-what_?” he croaked out, his body starting to tremble at the shock. Tadashi just quirked his lips upwards but there was something grim about them.

 

“I—I thought if I,” Tadashi said softly. “This isn’t how I imagined on telling you.”

 

“Tell me _what_?” Hiro asked, more like demanded. The situation suddenly sounding unruly and unbecoming. This doesn’t make sense anymore. No, his theory—this theory, was it true?

 

“Simpler version,” Tadashi said as he took a deep breath and looked at Hiro in the eyes. “ _I’m not dead_.”

 

The silence that stretched out between them was mind-numbing and exhausting. “What?” Hiro asked dumbly, his mind no longer processing anything. “I’m not dead?” he questioned, unsure of what to make of this. Tadashi sat straighter as he sighed.

 

“Hiro, I have a lot to explain and—and this is going to take some time to sink in,” Tadashi said softly. “But I’m real. I’m not—I’m Tadashi Hamada.”

 

“No!” Hiro took a step back as he stared at the man. “You are _not_ my brother,” he hissed out. “I saw him walking into the fire. He _died_!”

 

“He didn’t—I didn’t,” Tadashi insisted, his eyebrows furrowing and desperation took over. “I’m not dead.”

 

“You are—He _is_!” Hiro corrected as he felt himself having a hard time to breathe. “You’re making fun of me,” he hissed out. “You’re making this into some kind of a twisted joke!”

 

“I’m not!” Tadashi said, even though pain flashed into his eyes. “I’m not dead, Hiro. I know…this is a huge shock and I—I also know you had your suspicions. I’m clearly giving signs everywhere even though I tried my best to hide this. Hiro—I had to protect you. I had to leave you, Hiro.”

 

“No, you’re _lying_ ,” Hiro broke out as the agony washed into his words. “I—Stay away from me. You’re crazy.”

 

With that, Hiro turned around and opened the door. He dashed out of the room even though he heard a distant call of his name. He didn’t even register where he was going, he just knew that his mind was a puddled up mess. His emotions were swirling inside of him like some tornado and it was wrecking everything in his mind. He wasn’t usually an emotional boy, but this was just too much to take in. He ran out of the house, ignoring the doctor’s call of his name. With that, he just took off running, he didn’t know where he was going but he knew that he needed to get away from there.

 

The wind slashed against his face harshly as fresh tears rolled down his cheeks. His feet kept on moving until he felt everything around him swirling and he tripped onto something and fell hard on the stony pavement. He sobbed, he felt the sob at the back of his throat taking over. He didn’t like feeling so vulnerable but at this time, nothing made sense to him. How could this be real? How was he supposed to take this?

 

His brother was _dead_. He left him alone. Tadashi died that night leaving this fourteen-year-old boy behind. And now, after two years, there was someone who looked like him claimed that his Tadashi wasn’t dead. That he was real as ever and he had—had a reason—to why he had to act dead? The dread and anger manifested itself deep inside this younger Hamada.

 

No, this wasn’t the truth.

 

This was all just a cruel joke.

 

 _Please, wake up_ , he pleaded in his mind.

 

 _Wake_ up.

 

Wake _up_.

 

* * *

 

 

It had been three days since then. Hiro didn’t make any contact with anybody, he didn’t even go to the institute. His friends tried to contact him but he specifically made sure they wouldn’t reach him. He didn’t know how he had gone home that night but he had and Cass was worried for a moment. He wanted to tell her, he wanted to tell her of what he had heard, but he didn’t know how to. His mind jumbled up even more when he began to think about his aunt’s reaction. How was she going to take _this_? What made—if this was all true, what made Tadashi think his aunt was just going to accept this without having some mental breakdown like he did? He found it all too unrealistic as he just moved passed her and made way to his room. With that, he let the night to drown him out.

 

Now, he was here, sighing to himself, still confused and undignified with this situation. He didn’t want to believe anything but at the same time, he tried to make sense of everything. The recognition he had seen a few times in the man’s eyes, the way he moved and talked—it was too close resembling the real deal, so Hiro was surprised as to why he was so shocked at this news. But bitterness took over as he pondered that if this was real, then Tadashi had destroyed his faith from inside.

 

If this was true, then why did the older Hamada disappear himself for two years?

 

Why hadn’t the fire killed him yet?

 

Why did he insist that he was a Takachiho?

 

Couldn’t he have just said something the first time he met Hiro?

 

No, something didn’t make sense here, Hiro muttered in his mind. This man was lying, he was sure of it. But the small flutter of hope saying that this might be the real Tadashi prodded into his mind annoyingly. He slowly looked away from the ceiling and to Baymax, who was currently looming over him. He was lying on the bed, staring into oblivion as Baymax decided to stay company for Hiro. Then, he recalled of the time where Tadashi didn’t want Baymax to scan him. That time—it was eerily suspicious. It was the source of all Hiro’s suspicion. He always wanted to know why he didn’t let Baymax scan him. Could this be the reason why? Quickly sitting up, he looked at Baymax.

 

“Baymax, do you have Tadashi Hamada’s medical records with you?” Hiro asked. Baymax seemed to ponder for a moment before he replied.

 

“Yes, Hiro,” he said and Hiro bit his bottom lip.

 

“If I want to make a DNA comparison,” Hiro said slowly. “Would it be able to compare with his DNA in your database?” Hiro asked, hope somehow swelling inside.

 

“Yes,” Baymax immediately answered. “I have enough data to compare the DNA with Tadashi Hamada’s.”

 

Hiro immediately got up from his bed and looked around for his hoodie. Then, this was what he must do to keep his mind at ease. “Okay, come with me,” Hiro as he quickly grabbed his hoodie and wore it over his arms. He should have thought about this earlier. When Baymax was rejected that day, Hiro should’ve just grabbed some kind of evidence to compare their DNAs. This would’ve kept everything from spiralling out and down like this.

 

Hiro sometimes didn’t know why he got too emotional. He had to think this logically through. He had to end this suspicion in his mind. _Reality be damned_. He didn’t want to play the game with its rules anymore. He would make his own rules and whatever the consequences he had to face, he would do it so in a dramatic fashion. He was Hiro Hamada and he had enough of just immersing himself in pain and heartache. He needed a chance to breathe. He needed to find what the truth was and what wasn’t, he needed to compare with the falsified dreams and the harsh reality. He needed to keep his feet firmly planted on the ground. With that, he quickly exited his room with Baymax following him.

 

* * *

 

He knocked once and then twice before realising that there weren’t anybody home. He wondered where Tadashi was for a moment before he sighed and shook his head. He needed to get some physical evidence to compare this man’s DNA with his brother’s. He needed to do this. And if Tadashi wasn’t home, it was for the better and it would make things a lot easier. And with that, Hiro sighed and looked at the doorknob. It was old fashioned and definitely doesn’t take a lot of effort to break in. Hiro grinned momentarily before he proceeded to pick the lock. A slight sharp click resounded before Hiro opened the door and looked around him once more before going inside of the house. Baymax quickly squeezed through before Hiro closed the door and sighed.

 

With that, both of them wandered to Tadashi’s room. Knocking on the door for a moment just to be sure that nobody was around, he quickly twirled open the doorknob to his room and walked inside. “Right, I need something that I can compare it with the DNA,” he muttered to himself as he searched around for something small. He was glad that Tadashi wasn’t around. He guessed that he would be taking some physical check-up, as his friends informed him. Just then a thought occurred to him in his mind, did his friends know about it?

 

They had wanted to say something to him that day—was _this_ what they had in mind? He pondered for a few seconds before shaking his head.

 

Quickly removing the thought, he finally found a hair comb that he was sure belonged to the man. Without any delay, he took it the comb and showed it to Baymax, who was following Hiro with a questioning look on his face. Questioning look? Hiro shook his head. Maybe he was spending too much time with robots and inanimate objects. Finally he sighed and nodded. “Baymax, can you scan it for DNA traces?” he asked as Baymax immediately started with his green-like grid over the hair comb.

 

“Sufficient data,” Baymax reported. “Should I start the diagnosis with Tadashi Hamada’s DNA?”

 

Hiro hesitated. He _hesitated_. He was scared, to say the least. Somehow, a spark of hope had lived in his heart, hoping that this was his brother since that day, and if the scan had said otherwise, he didn’t know what he would do. What if this wasn’t his brother? He could practically feel the immense hurt washing over him already. Anxiousness took over as he chided himself for the cowardliness. This wasn’t a Hamada’s attitude. He needed to ‘man-up’ and try and get this over with.

 

Whatever the results would be—Hiro didn’t want to keep his hopes up.

 

With a reluctant nod, Baymax had begun to analyse it. It took a minute or two before the screen on Baymax lit up in light blue. Hiro felt his breath catch in his throat as he stared at the screen in front of him. The shock overrode him as he dropped the comb onto the floor. His eyes widened and his whole body felt lifeless at the moment. Fear once again drowned himself with disbelief. He couldn’t believe it.

 

The truth was mind-numbing and it hurts. Hiro touched his chest as he tried to sink the truth in. But it wasn’t helping. It wasn’t helping him _at all_ at the moment. Maybe Baymax did some error somewhere.

 

“This…this isn’t possible,” he said but the results were in front of him. He couldn’t deny it. “Rerun diagnosis. Rerun,” Hiro said, his voice tight and dry all of a sudden. Baymax did what he had said but at the end, the results were the same, humming lowly in light blue.

 

His whole life once again took a turn in a wrong direction as Baymax’s calculative voice read the results out loud.

 

“DNA matched with Tadashi Hamada; 99.99%.”

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _Welll_ \---The truth is out! Now, here comes the questions that I'm sure you lot are going to ask; Where's the fire burn if this is the real Tadashi? How in the _world_ did he escape? Heck, why the _hell_ did he remain adamant on being a Takachiho? How come he didn't recognise Hiro at the beginning? Why, _why_ after two years? Why did he even disappear for two years? And why now did he choose to reveal this? All of these questions and so much more, will be answered in the next chapter~ Trust me, I planned it all already. Hohohoho. Well, I hope you all have enjoyed this chapter. I tried, I seriously tried to make this endearing enough to be an exciting chapter--but I probably would've failed. So, I'm sorry if you are all disappointed somehow at this chapter. ;w; With that, do drop a comment to let me know what you guys thought and well--until the next chapter! :DD -Krystal


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Not mine!
> 
> I never meant to break your heart, I won’t let this plane go down, I never meant to make you cry, I’ll do what it takes to make this fly, oh – Up (Olly Murs ft Demi Lovato)

 

 

 

 

_DNA matched with Tadashi Hamada; 99.99%._

 

Inside of his mind, it was strangely dark. It was dark and somehow in between, there were some streaks of light. It didn’t make sense at the moment. Nothing was colliding properly and everything that he knew at one moment seemed to be wrong now. His mind was in disarray. He couldn’t grasp what was real and what wasn’t. The truth—this seemingly truth, it didn’t make things any better. It didn’t clear anything instead it made him even more confused. It was clouding and taking over everything that he once had seen and learned, and at the end, it left him aching inside.

 

The words rung inside of his mind. He didn’t think that this would ever happen. He didn’t want to believe that such things could happen. These things usually only happened in books, movies and dreams. It wasn’t supposed to happen to the younger Hamada. He felt numb, he noted. His mind felt numb, his body felt numb but most of all, his heart felt numb. It was as if he was stripped from emotions and now, he was just an empty shell. An empty shell that had no direction to head to at the moment. Where was he supposed to go now? What was he supposed to believe?

 

 _Who_ was he supposed to rely on?

 

He was scared, confused, angry, desperate—most of all, he was _glad_.

 

They didn’t mix well inside of him.

 

He was scared, he was scared that this wasn’t real. He was scared to open up his mind and heart again now that he had successfully closed it. He had thought for once that he could trust someone but at the end, it backlashed at him with a menacing laughter. It took everything inside of him not to yell or scream in frustration that was building inside of him. It was scary when he thought about how much he had spent—getting tricked and used. And now, his—his _brother_ —doing the same thing to him didn’t settle well inside. Touching his chest absent-mindedly, the dull ache pain once again relived.

 

He was confused. He couldn’t fit the puzzles properly into its place and it confused him. He knew where each part went, he knew it from the depths of his heart and yet—he couldn’t do it. The edges of the puzzle pieces were jagged. At the end, he couldn’t get the whole picture. It was missing a lot of pieces and those that were already in place didn’t look right to him. This whole reality didn’t make sense to him at the moment.

 

He was angry. It bubbled like some acidic toxic, washing inside of him with a sad hum. He felt deceived at one point. He had mourned his brother’s death. Someone who he had believed and trusted with his life—to the point where he had been consumed with a murderous rage when he found out that Callaghan had killed him. He _killed_ him. But now, he didn’t know who to be angry at. The name left a bitter metal-like taste as he felt his heart clenching at the thoughts and the words. He was so angry at him.

 

He was desperate. He wanted desperately to crawl into that man’s arms and hug him tight. He wanted to jolt awake and realise that his brother never really died and none of this— _none_ of this happened. He desperately wished he could turn back time and just relive the last moments before he had to witness the horrific death of his brother. But most of all, he desperately wished he didn’t confirm any of this. Now, things were getting harder and he wasn’t supposed to go through this. He was only sixteen, and he had so much more pain in life to go through. He didn’t expect that a ten years’ worth of pain to clash and slam right into his face. It hurt—it clawed and made Hiro’s wound bleed in dark blackness.

 

But—somewhere, deep inside, he was glad. That emotion frightened him from within but he couldn’t deny it. He was glad, that somehow, his life wasn’t so messed up after all. He had his brother back at some point. He was glad that he didn’t have to feel guilty anymore every time he would go and seek for the man’s attention. He didn’t have to fear about losing his brother’s original smile. Now, he could see it as many times as he wanted. His heart clenched painfully once more before the negativity washed into him again. _If_ there _was_ going to be a next time. He didn’t even know if he could process this anymore. Forgiveness seemed to be so far away at the moment. Could he grasp it and hand it over to—him? _Could_ he? He didn’t know.

 

He wished he knew.

 

The door creaked open and Gogo walked in, her eyebrows raised up as she spotted Hiro. The younger Hamada lolled his head and looked at her. He was sitting on his bed, his back against the wall, in his grasp was a picture. He looked away from her and to the picture, his lips thinning, forming a straight line. He let his thumb to caress over it, realising that this was the truth after all. He couldn’t fathom anyway to accept the fact and he was in denial when he looked at the blue-screen. But as he looked around the room, he noticed this picture on the desk, looking silently back at him.

 

And when Hiro saw the picture, everything slammed inside of his head and the truth finally settled in.

 

All denial was out of the window the next moment as he shakily took the picture and stared at it.

 

He let a silent smile to crawl on his lips before he dropped it. The pain coiling once more inside as he felt a choked sob threatening to escape his lips. Gogo noticed the look before she looked behind her, the other three looking at her with a frown on their lips. “Hiro?” she said slowly as she looked back at the younger Hamada. Hiro touched his chest for a moment before he squeezed tight, bunching up his shirt. The feisty woman took a few steps closer as Hiro finally let out an estranged noise, trying to make some coherent sentence, only failing. The younger Hamada tried to stop the tears from falling, but the numbness suddenly wore off and he felt this huge urge to just cry. Trying to wipe his tears, he frowned when he couldn’t stop himself from crying.

 

There and then, they knew something was wrong.

 

Gogo sighed as she slowly sat next to him, looking at him for a moment before her eyes fell on the picture. It didn’t take long before she clicked the puzzles together. But she was still wasn’t sure at how far the truth was known. “Hiro?” she asked once more as Hiro took in a shaky breath and tried to stabilise himself, the grip around the picture tightening, almost crinkling the corners.

 

After a beat, he said, “He’s _alive_.”

 

The stunned silence enveloping the whole room settled in before Gogo frowned. “What do you mean?” she asked gently only for Hiro to chuckle dryly, even though a sob ended his chuckles.

 

“ _He’s alive_!” he yelled out, snapping his eyes from the picture to Gogo. His eyes, his brown eyes was sharp and pain filled them so heavily that it could stop any man from speaking. “ _He’s_ always been _alive_!”

 

“Hiro?” Honey Lemon started slowly as she closed the room door. “Who are you talking about?”

 

“ _Tadashi_ ,” Hiro bit out darkly before he sighed and leaned the back of his head against the wall. He tried to breathe for a moment, taking in a deep breath before he closed his eyes, a few tears slipping past his them and down his cheeks. “You guys knew, didn’t you?” he asked softly. None of them said anything but the heavy guilt and anxiousness made Hiro snap his eyes wide before looking at them. “ _Didn’t you_?”

 

“We did,” Wasabi said quietly. “But—at the beginning we had no idea at all.”

 

“When?” Hiro asked, his voice sounding even and eerie all of a sudden.

 

“When Tadashi woke up,” Gogo started carefully. “He started to look for you. We didn’t question anything at first but—but, the scene seemed so odd, Hiro.”

 

“Why would a perfect stranger, who just met you, suddenly was willing to risk his life _for_ you?” Wasabi continued for her. “It didn’t make sense. And—he knew. He _knew_ it didn’t make sense to us.”

 

“So, he told you?” Hiro asked.

 

“He didn’t,” Honey Lemon said. “Not at first. But—it didn’t take long for him to crack.”

 

“When we questioned it, he said you were important,” Fred said next, his voice sounding quiet. “But at the end, when he saw we didn’t believe it, he told us the truth.”

 

“That’s why after realising you’re not going to visit, we thought to tell you ourselves,” Wasabi said quickly. “But you didn’t let us finish.”

 

“You specifically kicked us out,” Gogo added as Hiro sighed loudly. “How did he tell you?”

 

“He—I pressured him out for it,” Hiro said slowly. “I didn’t even know. I’m so stupid.”

 

“Hiro,” Honey said, her voice comforting. “You didn’t know. Neither of us knew.”

 

“Did he,” Hiro said for a moment before he felt a lump in his throat. Swallowing it, he continued, “Did he tell you why he— _why_ he did _this_?”

 

“No,” Wasabi said. “He said he had his reasons. He said he didn’t want to tell us until he spoke to you.”

 

“I thought he tells you guys everything,” Hiro muttered out bitterly as Gogo sighed.

 

“Even if he told us the reasons,” Gogo started. “We won’t be telling you now. Not when he hadn’t said anything at all.”

 

“He wanted to,” Hiro corrected her. “But I didn’t listen.”

 

“You have to listen, Hiro,” Honey said. “Maybe he did have a good reason—”

 

“Reason or without a reason,” Hiro snapped, cutting her off. “He left me, alright? He _abandoned_ me. He made me believe he _died_! I—I _watched_ him _die_. After two years, he suddenly thinks he can come into my life and make me believe otherwise? He has another thing coming from this Hamada.”

 

“You’re so stubborn,” Gogo said with a loud sigh. “But—I know what you’re feeling.”

 

“ _Do_ _you_?” Hiro questioned her sharply. “Do you feel stupid? Do you feel as if someone had stabbed your heart repeatedly and then burn it? Do you feel as if you’re nothing because you’re abandoned so easily? _Do you_?”

 

Silence took over for a moment as he eyed each of them before he snorted dryly. “Thought so.”

 

“Hiro,” Wasabi started. “We get it. Maybe—maybe this didn’t affect us as much as it affected you, but we’re still in the same boat! He was our friend, man. We cared for him.”

 

“It—it was disheartening at first,” Honey said. “We were angry too. We didn’t want to talk to him anymore. To think he could do this to you, out of all people, made us feel—angry. But, but Hiro, this is _Tadashi_. He, he wouldn’t do something so heartless unless he has a really good reason.”

 

“You have to realise Hiro,” Gogo said suddenly, her voice warm. “He only ever thinks about what’s good for you.”

 

“So what’s the good in this, huh?” Hiro questioned. “What’s so good about disappearing for two years? Making me believe that he died! He approached me, pretending that he wasn’t my brother. And suddenly, this happens. What am I living in? Some kind of twisted fairy tale? Did you guys think I would just smile and happily accept him back?”

 

“We didn’t,” Fred said. “But we thought at least you would listen.”

 

“I’m done listening,” Hiro muttered. “I’m done with this crap.”

 

“Hiro,” Wasabi said. “Just give him a chance. Just—just one chance to explain everything. Every single thing, let him explain it all out. And then, then decide if you want to accept him or you want to push him away.”

 

Hiro remained quiet as he stared into Wasabi’s eyes. For a moment, he searched the man’s face before he realised something was amiss. “ _You know why he did this_.” It wasn’t a question, it was a statement. A statement that clearly rung out in formality. Wasabi stiffened for a moment before Hiro scoffed and shook his head. “You guys _knew_?” he asked, sounding unbelievably tired at the moment.

 

“Hiro, hear Tadashi out. Just listen to what he has to say,” Honey Lemon urged him. “ _Please_?”

 

 Hiro didn’t want to. He didn’t want to heed them. They knew about this and they didn’t tell him. But he was at fault too—he recalled. They had tried to let him know. They tried to warn him. He sighed as he remained silent. They knew Tadashi well too. Somehow, deep inside of his heart, he knew that Tadashi wouldn’t do something like this without a concrete reason. He was tempted to just shove those reasons down the drain and flush them away, but the need in his heart didn’t budge. His hatred, that once sparked in his heart suddenly dissipated as he looked back at the picture. He didn’t want to do any of this anymore and he knew that to end this, this confusion—it was best to do just that.

 

 _Listen_.

 

Nodding silently, he let that physical confirmation hang in the air without any verbal contact.

 

* * *

 

It had been almost three weeks. He didn’t recover from the initial shock of knowing that his brother was alive and he didn’t make any contact or move to hear of the reasons either. He knew Tadashi was waiting for him. He knew that the older Hamada wanted to straighten things out between the two of them but his heart was still damaged and cracked to the point that nothing could repair it. The thief, the case, it was all momentarily forgotten. Sure, Hiro drowned himself in his work, trying to analyse Baymax’s scans on the thief and tried to get the closest clues meanwhile working on his assignments but at the back of his mind, Tadashi was waiting for him.

 

His friends didn’t urge him either. They knew that he needed to do things in his own pace. He didn’t want to let the reality push him over the edge anymore. The thief, however, switching topics, didn’t make any more contact with the world. Hiro didn’t know if that was a good thing or a bad thing since it had almost been a month since the last attack. A huge plan was taking over and the younger Hamada felt a kick in his mind when he saw the body figure of the thief in his laptop.

 

He was currently sitting in his aunt’s café, sipping a cup of coffee that tasted way too bitter. He analysed it for a moment before he caught the thief’s eyes. From the mask, the eyes caught his attention. Hiro quickly placed the cup of coffee on the table and squinted at them. Zooming into the eyes, he felt his breath hitch when he saw those familiar orange eyes. It clicked in his mind when he finally realised where he had seen those neon electric before. Cursing under his breath, he quickly gathered his stuff and almost started walking when someone stood in front of him, blocking his path.

 

“Move over,” Hiro said as he looked up at the person. His eyes widened when he realised who it was blocking his path. The man smiled warmly at Hiro before he raised an amused eyebrow at the wide-gaping look Hiro was giving him. “ _Uhm_ ,” Hiro said slowly as the man chuckled.

 

“Do you have somewhere urgent to be?” the man asked, a soft ring of British accent ringing through his tone. Hiro looked at him for a while before he dumbly looked back to the front door of the café. He needed to let his friends know about this man as he finally had some kind of lead but at the same time, this man in front of him—he looked so inviting to just sit down and talk. At the end, Hiro sighed mentally and sat back down, hoping that whatever this man had wanted to say, it would be quick.

 

“Doctor Teo,” Hiro greeted the man formally before he closed his laptop and placed it on his lap, looking at him. “Uh, why are you here?” he asked uncomfortably, the sudden image of Tadashi invading his mind. Teo smiled for a moment before sighing.

 

“You’re Hiro Hamada, huh?” the man said softly as Hiro raised an eyebrow.

 

“Well, _yeah_?” Hiro said cautiously. He was sure that this man was the one who had treated him at the hospital. He didn’t know how to respond to that as the man shook his head a bit. “What’s wrong?” he asked finally, unsure of how to proceed anymore.

 

“He finally told you, didn’t he?” the man finally said, making Hiro freeze. After a beat, the man continued, “And then you ran away. You didn’t even drink my tea.”

 

Hiro blinked a few times before he felt the weighing memories started to jumble up in his mind. He gripped his laptop for a second before he sighed dejectedly. “I’m sorry,” Hiro said quietly. “I—I can’t see him right now. I need time.”

 

“I know,” Teo said quickly, assuring Hiro with a smile. “I’m not pressuring you or anything. I’m just—I just want to let you know some of the truth, if you will.”

 

Hiro sat straighter at that as he looked at the man. “What?” he asked as the man looked at Hiro in the eyes. Before the man could speak, Cass came into the view, walking up to them with a graceful smile on her face.

 

“Hiro,” she said before she looked at the man. “Hi, welcome to my café.”

 

Teo looked up to her for a moment before a sheepish smile made way on his lips, colouring his face. “Hi to you too,” he said as Cass smiled wider.

 

“I’m Cass,” she said before she extended out a hand. Hiro raised an eyebrow at the sudden change of atmosphere as the man chuckled and stood up, taking her hand and shaking it. “Hiro’s aunt.”

 

“I’m Teo Takachiho,” Teo said, the smile still on his face. Hiro froze once again as he tried to process the last name of the man. _Takachiho_? Hiro pondered for a moment before he realised that it matched with Tadashi’s new last name. Furrowing his eyebrows, the confusion settled in once more. Just who was this man? He did slightly remember that Teo had said something about being Tadashi’s guardian but the whole concept was still unclear. However, his aunt didn’t seem to recognise anything was out of order and released the handshake, her eyes lingering on the man a bit longer than necessary. “I’m just here to talk to your nephew.”

 

“Ah, you know him?” Cass asked, sounding quite confused a bit.

 

“I do,” Teo confirmed before he glanced at Hiro and gave him an amused smile. “I treated him when he fainted and landed in our hospital, unconscious for nine hours.”

 

Cass’s eyes widened before she quickly looked back at the younger Hamada. Hiro cursed inside as he glared at the man and avoided meeting his aunt’s scary gaze. He didn’t tell his aunt about this, somehow  afraid that she would react this way. He didn’t want to make her worried. But now, he was caught. “Oh, _when_ did this happen?” she asked, her voice tight and menacing laced with a dash of disappointment.

 

“About a month ago, Mrs—”

 

“A month ago?” Cass repeated lowly, sounding completely ready to hit Hiro on the head. Hiro quickly cleared his throat and looked away. He didn’t dare to look at her in fear he would see disappointment. Groaning in his head, he felt a small dash of guilt making way into his heart if she knew about Tadashi. That thought caused him to sigh lowly, his shoulders shagging. His aunt would look so disappointed and worn out if she knew all of this. “And it isn’t Mrs. I’m not married,” she said as she looked back at the doctor with a smile—even though it was less than friendly at the moment.

 

“I’m sorry,” Teo apologised. “I didn’t mean to sound rude. And it wasn’t anything bad. He’s really in a good health.”

 

“Really?” Cass said, sounding dry and unbelievable as she casted Hiro a disapproving glare. “I would still appreciate it if I can know when my nephew ends up having a trip to the hospital.”

 

“Sorry,” Hiro mumbled before he looked at her timidly and smiled sheepishly. “I just didn’t want to worry you. I’m fine, aren’t I?” It was a _lie_. He was less than fine. He was horrid and messed up inside but for his aunt’s ease, he lied. She looked at him, unsure of whether to believe him or not before she sighed and shook her head.

 

“Just, make sure you tell me these things, okay, Hiro?” she said, her voice sounded off a bit before he nodded.

 

“I will, Aunt Cass,” Hiro said, a promise under his words as she nodded, satisfied with it. With that, she looked back at the doctor and sighed.

 

“Well, so, you two know each other?” she asked as the man nodded.

 

“I met your nephew a few times after the visit to the hospital,” Teo said, ending it with a small chuckle. “He’s an interesting kid. We always end up talking somehow. So, I visited this café to buy some of the famous pies I heard about and found him here.” Well, it wasn’t a _complete_ lie, Hiro noted in his mind as his aunt blushed a bit at the compliment about her pastries.

 

“Well, I’ll get you a slice of pie then, how does that sound?” she asked as he nodded. Looking back at Hiro, she smiled and rolled her eyes when he fixed her a suspicious look. “I’ll get them now. And, you two can talk while I heat the pies up.”

 

“Thank you, Miss,” he said as she giggled.

 

“No, no,” she said. “Just Cass is fine.”

 

“Cass,” Teo said as he tested the name out. She nodded before she walked away. Hiro watched her leave for a moment before shaking his head. That was certainly something that he didn’t want to know. Something was going on just a moment there but he wasn’t _that_ curious to find out. Once she disappeared and far away from them, Hiro immediately looked at the man.

 

“She doesn’t know,” Hiro said after the man had sat down. Teo looked at the younger Hamada before sighing.

 

“I figured so from the way she didn’t recognise my last name,” he said quietly.

 

“You wanted to tell me something?” Hiro asked, once again the small dose of nervousness crowding his chest and suffocating him slightly. Teo remained quiet for a while before he looked at Hiro.

 

“I lost a son at his age when I found him,” Teo said suddenly, catching Hiro off guard. “My wife and my son died in a car accident and my son was about your brother’s age at that time.”

 

Hiro didn’t know what to say to that, so instead of thinking or contemplating about it, he let the words to wash in him and settle down. “I—Your brother loves you a lot, Hiro. I don’t want to say anything before he does, so all I’m going to say is, your brother, even though it was temporary, was like family to me after they died. He came in and completed this huge gap I have inside after losing my wife and son,” the man said as he touched his chest and patting it, gently looking over to the younger Hamada. “I know this doesn’t make sense to you and I’m sure you’re hurt, but he has reasons for it.”

 

“I—I don’t know what’s real anymore,” Hiro confessed gently.

 

“Trust me, Hiro,” Teo said, his voice sounding serious. “Just listen to him and then understand why he did this. Why he had to do this. Don’t keep on running away from him. Because one day—you might really lose him and at that time, there won’t be a second chance like what you have now.”

 

Hiro felt the wash hitting and settling in deep before he sighed. “I just need time. I need time to get this turn of events in my head right. I need to— _breathe_ for a second.”

 

Teo nodded seriously, looking as if he understood and somehow, Hiro could sense that he really did. “And take all the time you need. But please _don’t_ run away. It won’t solve anything and I’ve been there before. I lost my parents when I was your age, and I know what it feels like to lose a piece of yourself forever. It doesn’t solve anything, when you tried to deny it. At the end, I had to accept the fact that they won’t come back and move on. But _you_ , Hiro. You have a second chance to see your brother. So, don’t let this chance slip away.”

 

Hiro pondered silently as he took in the words, just washing into him. It made sense and somehow, his anger gently resided a bit. But the hurt was there and even though he knew what this man was saying, he couldn’t find it in his heart to listen.

 

But he knew one day he had to.

 

He just hoped it wouldn’t be too late by then.

 

* * *

 

“Junko?”

 

“Yeah, Junko,” Hiro said as he sighed and sat on the couch in Fred’s room. After the conversation with Teo, he pushed the words to the back of his mind and proceeded with his theory and observations. “I think it’s him. I recognise those eyes anywhere.” He had called up his friends to discuss about this and they ended up meeting up at Fred’s mansion. Currently, they were sitting inside of Fred’s room, once more trying to ponder the case. He knew that his friends were at the edge of their seats, waiting and wanting to know what had happened between Tadashi and him but he didn’t give them a chance to ask as he presented his theory. That would divert their attention for now, Hiro noted.

 

Besides, there were other more important things besides himself at stake at the moment.  

 

“Junko—the guy you had an illegal bot fight with?” Fred asked as Hiro nodded. “But why Junko?”

 

“He’s the one who I’ve seen manipulated electricity for his own use,” Hiro explained. “I saw him when he was using the bot. He could control electricity just by the tips of his fingers. It’s amazing really and that’s why the thief’s design looked so familiar.”

 

“Are you sure though, that it’s Junko?” Gogo asked as she searched through online to find out more about this man.

 

“I want to say I’m positive but I’m still trying to fit the puzzles,” Hiro confessed. “But I think it’s him. After the same day I saw him exiting the electronic shop, the shop ended up getting targeted by the thief. The electric-induced suit and blue-neon lights. It’s him.”

 

“Well, if you’re sure about him, then we have a suspect,” Wasabi said as Hiro nodded.

 

“Oh, catch this,” Honey suddenly beamed up as she looked up from her tablet. “Is this the guy?” she asked as she turned her tablet and gave Hiro a good look on the man’s face. Hiro raised an eyebrow when he saw the man wearing a suit and nodded. He recognised him anywhere. He looked big and scary and Hiro guessed he had some fetish for whales and walruses judging by the look of him. “Then, he's Junko Hyde. The Hyde industry is an electric-supplying company for the electricity we have now. He’s the son of Kynlee Hyde.”

 

“That explains his knowledge in electricity,” Gogo mused as Hiro nodded.

 

“Alright, so all that we need now is some proof that he did it,” Hiro said as Fred grinned.

 

“Are we going to break into his house?”

 

Immediately, Wasabi groaned. “ _Really_? We’re going to break into a millionaire’s house?” Wasabi asked, sounding slightly perplexed with the idea. “Doesn’t he have a smaller space we can break into? You know, without getting chased by hungry human eating dogs?”

 

“ _Dogs_?” Hiro asked as an amused smile curled on his face. Wasabi just spluttered out a response as Fred chuckled and patted Wasabi on the back.

 

“No worries, man,” Fred said. “Fredzilla’s here to protect you.”

 

“That really doesn’t help my fear,” Wasabi bit out. “ _At_ _all_. In fact, I think it just doubled it.”

 

“I don’t think we need to break into a huge mansion,” Gogo said as she looked at her phone. “Internet says Junko has his own house. A shabby apartment actually. Who knows why, but he does.”

 

“The _internet_ actually told you that?” Fred asked only for Gogo to smirk at him.

 

“I have my ways.”

 

“Alright then, let’s get the address and break in.” Hiro was about to get up only to be pulled back down on the couch by Gogo.

 

“Not today or tonight,” she said firmly as he raised an eyebrow at that.

 

“Why not?” he asked as she sighed.

 

“You still haven’t visited him yet,” she continued. Silence once again rolled into the scene as Hiro froze momentarily. He couldn’t help but to sigh loudly at that. Why was everyone so persistent about this matter? Didn’t they see that this was something that he had to do alone in his own pace?

 

“ _Guys_ ,” Hiro warned as Wasabi smiled at him.

 

“We know,” he said as Hiro nodded at him. “I hope it’ll be soon though.”

 

“I’ll—I’ll go when I’m ready, alright?” Hiro ushered. “I’m fine, really. I’m—I just need _time_.”

 

“Okay,” Honey Lemon said after a moment. “We’ll go tomorrow. When he’s likely not be around.”

 

With that, they swiftly changed the subject. Hiro was grateful for that as he settled in for the conversation, his mind somehow saturated with theories and ideas that momentarily, he let himself forget about Tadashi and his great reappearing act.

 

* * *

 

It was late when he finally finished with the meeting and somehow, he told his friends that he wanted to walk back home. Gogo didn’t even want to know why but she didn’t stop him. They knew that he needed his time alone as well. He had so much in his plate at the moment that he needed to sort things out and focus on the ones that mattered at the moment. He walked as the starry sky greeted him happily, twinkling in the darkness. The streetlights did nothing to dim the soft glow the sky gave out, making him smile silently.

 

His mind was somehow running back to Tadashi once again.

 

He didn’t let himself think much of his brother all this while, just wanting to enjoy this peace he got hold for a moment before letting himself drown into the madness. This _was_ madness, he mused in his mind. It had been two years and suddenly, out of nowhere his ‘ _dead_ ’ brother came back up from the grave saying that he was pretty much alive. Hiro’s mind wandered to a zombie movie he watched when he was young. They always frightened him even though he knew they were all makeups and schematics. It didn’t make sense, fear that is, in Hiro’s mind. Fear was illogical and it didn’t settle well for him, so he didn’t know why he had it. But he was human, wasn’t he?

 

Walking slowly, he let his feet do the walking and his mind the thinking. He was exhausted from this reality twists. He would rather let this all settle down before he received another twist. It wasn’t doing anything good to his self-esteem. However, reality never really listened to anyone before so Hiro doubted that it would start to listen to him now. Sighing, he finally stopped when he saw the institute. He furrowed his eyebrows as he looked around him.

 

It turned out he somehow had walked here. He didn’t move though, instead, he just stared ahead at the institute. He remembered when his brother brought him here at night, trying to convince him about coming and studying here. He couldn’t help but to chuckle at the memories. How he loved the sight of the building and how he was introduced to the nerd lab. He also saw the twinkle in his brother’s eyes when he showed Baymax to him for the first time. Hiro had to smile widely at that. How his brother dedicated his work for the betterment of the world.

 

But then, he had to go and _die_.

 

That sudden flicker of emotions made him frown slightly. He didn’t want to think about those things but he couldn’t help it but realise that that was _what_ had _happened_. He realised that it had been two years since then, he had lived two years without his brother only for somehow Tadashi came sauntering into his life once more. What was he going to do about this? Was he going to accept this or was he going to push this away?

 

He needed the reasons, the variables first and that was what he was so scared off at the moment.

 

He was scared to hear of the reasons.

 

He didn’t want to hear anything that didn’t revolve around him.

 

And it sounded selfish so Hiro tried not to ask for things.

 

Sighing, he jumped when he heard someone calling him. The voice that was filled with recognition and question that it washed over Hiro quietly. He snapped his head and looked at the person who called him only for him to feel the world had stop moving for a second, he staring at the person in front of him. His mouth went dry and his mind went blank for a second before the flashes of the confession entered his mind in short flickers, making him to break the eye contact and look away.

 

“What are you doing here?” Hiro asked absent-mindedly. He couldn’t understand why whenever he tried to avoid this man, Tadashi would appear at the most uncommon places and surprise him. Tadashi remained quite before he sighed.

 

“I was checking out my labs and experiments today and I seemed to have stayed back too late.” Hiro nodded at the statement before he bit his bottom lip. He should leave. He wasn’t ready to meet Tadashi again. Silence washed in before Hiro decided that it was now or never if he wanted to bolt and run away. “Hiro?” the man questioned as Hiro closed his eyes shut for a moment before he turned around and tried to walk away. “Hiro, wait. _Please_.”

 

The desperation in the words seeped out and it made Hiro halt in his steps. He didn’t want to do this now. He _wasn’t_ ready. Why was the world so cruel to him at times? He wanted to run away. He really did but everything else was stopping him. His body wasn’t cooperating. The need in his chest pulsed once more, seeking the answers even if the host itself didn’t want to. How was it that his brain and his heart were working separately? He didn’t know what to think about this situation he was in. He took in a shaky breath as he slowly turned around to look back at his brother. Tadashi looked at him, worry fleeted across his face before he said, “Please, stay for a while.”

 

“I’m _not_ —”

 

“ _Please_ , Hiro,” Tadashi said, not allowing his younger brother to speak anymore. “ _Just_ listen to me. I—I just want to explain.”

 

Hiro shuffled from one foot to the other, trying to decide what to do. He didn’t want to listen. But Tadashi—he was so sure that he could clear this thing between them. And Hiro, he himself had so many questions. He tried to ponder for the answers alone, but the more he tried to figure it all out, the less sense it made and at the end, he would feel torn up inside. Looking at the man carefully, Hiro let him take the image of his brother—looking better and healthy after the incident. Hiro felt a tug in his heart as he realised that this—this wasn’t someone he didn’t know.

 

This was his _brother_.

 

His _brother_ was back for him.

 

Finally, he nodded. “Okay,” was all Hiro said as he saw how relief washed into Tadashi’s face. “But—it doesn’t mean anything until I hear everything, you got me?” Hiro bit out as the older Hamada nodded. “I mean it, I need to hear everything. _Every. Single. Detail_.”

 

“And I will tell you everything you need and want to know,” Tadashi confirmed in a beat as Hiro sighed loudly. “ _Everything_.”

 

“Okay,” Hiro said finally, sounding defeated for a moment. “Where should we talk?” he asked as Tadashi just shifted a bit.

 

“How about—your lab.”

 

* * *

 

Hiro wasn’t someone who usually would come back to the institute to use the lab at night. He was sure it was somehow against the regulations of this institute to come so late at night. But he doubted they would say anything as Hiro walked into his lab and sighed. Tadashi followed quickly before the lab door closed with a hiss. Silence lingered on before Hiro gestured for Tadashi to sit only for the man to decline. So, instead, the younger Hamada took his seat, realising that he might need it more than Tadashi did.

 

“So?” Hiro said dryly after a while of silence. Tadashi sighed before he looked at the younger Hamada in the eyes. “Explain. I’m listening.”

 

“I— _I’m sorry_ ,” Tadashi said suddenly, causing Hiro to stiffen in his seat. Hiro looked at the man in the eyes as he searched for something. “Before I start explaining, just know that I’m sorry. And—and if I could have been back earlier, I would’ve. It’s not my intention to disappear for two years and suddenly come back.”

 

“It’s not just that, Tadashi,” Hiro said slowly. “You pretended as if you didn’t know me. You—you acted and treated me as if I’m _someone_ _else’s_ younger brother. Why didn’t you say anything to me when you met me that day?”

 

Tadashi remained quiet for a while before nodding. “Hiro,” he said before he took a step forward. “The day the fire happened,” Tadashi began as Hiro kept quiet and listened. “I was searching for Callaghan. He was stuck there, I thought. Somebody needs to help him.”

 

The last sentence made Hiro wince slightly. That was the sentence, the last thing he heard from his brother before he watched him die. “So, I did. But then I saw—that I was mistaken. I—he _stole_ your microbots, Hiro. I tried to make him stop but for the first time in my life, I saw that he was filled with despair and anger. When he tried to leave, I went ahead and stopped him. But he somehow, he ended up pushing me against something hard and I knocked my head.”

 

Hiro looked away, the scene creating in his head wasn’t so great at the moment but Tadashi didn’t see any signs that the younger Hamada wanted him to stop. “He threatened me, Hiro. If you knew about it—if anybody knows about it, you’ll get hurt. I had to agree, Hiro. But when he left me stranded in the fire, and left me to find my way out, I ended up meeting Teo Takachiho. He was one of the people trapped inside of the fire. My head was messed up and I couldn’t register anything but he helped me out.”

 

“He helped you?” Hiro asked quietly as Tadashi nodded.

 

“We escaped the fire by using some other route we found. The fire consumed only the front part of the building but still, it didn’t make things less easy. At the end, we escaped and the last thing I recalled was watching him trying to make me breathe. The next thing I knew when I woke up, I didn’t know where I was, who I was or what day it was.”

 

“ _Amnesia_ ,” Hiro concluded after a silent as Tadashi nodded before he continued to close in Hiro. With that, he sat on his knees and looked at Hiro, holding onto his hands and smiling apologetically. Hiro just stared at his older brother, nodding after a while, asking him to continue. He let his hands to be held, as a sign of comfort.

 

“I had amnesia and it didn’t help when I can only recall my first name and a few pieces of my past. Teo treated me, saying that we were lucky since we didn’t touch any flames. But the smoke could’ve suffocated us. It did graze us slightly but—it healed. I still have the tiny scars left but, I was fine. It was confusing, especially when I know that I don’t have my parents and then there’s this boy in my head, he was always there. I see you in my dreams, Hiro but I don’t know you and god, I thought you died too,” Tadashi said carefully, his eyes filled with something that etched to sorrow. Hiro felt silent tears filling up his eyes as he sighed.

 

“I’m not dead,” Hiro mumbled, his voice cracking slightly as Tadashi chuckled.

 

“I know, but I didn’t know then,” he said, his voice quiet. “Teo, he lost his son and his wife in a car accident. So, he took care of me, made me feel better again. When I was finally less disoriented, he thought I had somewhere to go but when I said I didn’t—he decided to take care of me. I adopted his last name at the end, because I had no guardian—I thought I didn’t.”

 

“So, you’re no longer a Hamada,” Hiro said, his voice sounding sour. Tadashi smiled softly at that before he sighed once more.

 

“I’ll always be a Hamada, Hiro,” he said. “I just was a Takachiho for a while. I—I couldn’t remember anything. What I studied, where I had come from, who my family was. But my body remembers. It misses the wrench, it misses the calculations and I was so confused. I stayed home with Teo for a year, trying to get through my confusions and then I decided to focus and move on, hoping one day I’ll get my memories back. So, I read whatever I could get my hands on and I ended up getting interested in medicine,” Tadashi said he chuckled a bit. “But then, then, even after a year, after a year of not being able to explore the world, I went out that day. The day I met you, was the day I couldn’t resist not going out any longer. And Hiro—I felt like I knew you all my life that day but I just couldn’t understand why.”

 

“So, you finally got your memories back?” Hiro asked timidly, looking as if he was scared to hear the answer. Tadashi just gripped onto his hands tightly and nodded.

 

“It took me some time but once I interacted with you—it came flooding in from familiarity,” Tadashi said slowly. “It’s true though, I ended up transferring to SFIT for Biomed only but—when I saw you Hiro, I just needed to be with you. You looked so familiar and so warm, I just couldn’t help it.”

 

“So, it’s just bits of flashes before you regained them all?” Hiro asked as Tadashi nodded.

 

“I finally got them all back after the hug. I—your words were so familiar that I couldn’t help but to ponder them in my head and at the end, I got them back.”

 

“Is that why you didn’t see me for those past three days?” Hiro questioned. Tadashi just remained silent for a minute before he nodded hesitantly.

 

“I wasn’t ready to see you again. I thought about what I did, how I got close to you. I was scared you’re going to hate me after you find out the truth but you searched for me and somehow, I thought maybe if the truth never came up and I just continue to stay by your side as someone who looked like your dead brother, it’ll be fine. But—but the longer I stayed as a stranger, the more I couldn’t handle seeing you so confused and sad and Hiro—I never meant to hurt you this much,” Tadashi said, his voice coming our desperately as his eyes shimmered with sadness. “I’m sorry, Hiro. I just— _please don’t leave me._ ”

 

Silence clouded as Hiro tried to register the words. He tried to ponder out his reaction. He felt the anger in him slowly dying and washing away and the pain—it was subsiding. Something in him relaxed when he realised his brother never really wanted to leave him. Tadashi had always somehow wanted to seek him out. He felt warm inside all over and even though he had spent the two years in loneliness, now he had his brother back. But the sense of betrayal was still present and no matter how much he wanted to do something about this, that feeling wouldn’t let him. “I—I feel cheated somehow, Tadashi,” Hiro finally said. “If you just had said something before, I wouldn’t have, we wouldn’t have been like this.”

 

“I’m sorry,” Tadashi said quietly, his voice shaking slightly. “I won’t leave you again. I promise. I’ll stay by your side as long as I live, Hiro.”

 

Hiro remained silent as he closed his eyes momentarily, the tears that had gathered in his eyes finally slid down his face. “I—I was so lost when you died,” he said softly as Tadashi slowly raised his hand and wiped the tears off his face. Hiro opened his eyes again to look at his brother, a sob threatened to take over once more as he felt the need to just bury his face into his older brother's embrace. “I missed you every single day. I wanted to wake up from this bad dream and just wish you were here again. I didn’t even get to say I love you for the last time.”

 

Tadashi just smiled warmly before he slowly dragged Hiro off from the chair and onto the ground. He carefully wrapped his arms around the younger Hamada, making sure he doesn’t freak him out. Seconds ticked on before Hiro relaxed into the embrace and hugged him back, feeling the warmth breaking his sob. He felt the familiarity washed over him. He felt loved at the moment and that was more than enough to clear every single doubt he had in his mind. He clenched onto Tadashi tightly as if he was scared he would lose him. Tadashi did the same, both Hamada brothers silently wishing for this moment to last. Nobody else said anything as they just sat like that. Hiro let his mind wander a lot at that time, letting the silence to calm him. He felt as if the world had lifted the load from his shoulders. He felt as if he had finally made it through. But still, somewhere inside, the trust was broken.

 

Even though it mended some of the cracks, it still needed some time and personal time with Tadashi to get this trust to be fully mended. Silently, Hiro sighed as he recalled of Cass. Slowly looking at Tadashi from the hug, he said, “What about Aunt Cass? Does she know?”

 

Tadashi stiffened before he shook his head slightly. “No,” he said absent-mindedly. “I—I wanted to tell you first,” he said before he looked down onto the younger Hamada. Hiro pondered this for a moment before he pulled away from the hug.

 

“Tadashi,” he said slowly. “It’s going to take some time. I—My trust, it’s shattered when I found out about this. But, I—I forgive you. I can’t stay away from you. I need you, Tadashi. But I need time before I can really trust you. And you _have_ to tell Aunt Cass.”

 

Tadashi stared at him for a second before he nodded. “I will, tomorrow. I will,” he said. “For now, I just want to stay here with you like this. _Please_?”

 

Hiro felt the tremble in his heart once more as he nodded and resumed the hug, just letting the silence take over for a moment. He felt Tadashi placing a soft kiss on the crown of his head before he whispered something into the night, making Hiro to burn red around his face but a pleasant comforting smile to appear on his face.

 

“I love you too, Hiro.” After a beat, he added, “What made you change your mind?”

 

Hiro looked at him silently as he waited for Tadashi to elaborate. Realising this, Tadashi smiled and continued, “You didn’t want to believe me that day, I just wanted to know what made you believe in _me_...,” Tadashi said softly as Hiro sighed.

 

“I snuck into your room,” he confessed. “Baymax got your DNA and—you know, it matched. But, I also found this,” Hiro said as he pulled away a bit and took out a photograph. “ _You kept this_.”

 

Tadashi looked at the picture and smiled. “It was when you graduated from high school. Of course I did, Hiro,” Tadashi said softly as Hiro felt a warm smile stretching on his lips. “Anything about you, I’ll cherish it forever.”

 

Hiro didn’t respond to that with any verbal signs instead he just smiled wide and bright. For the first time in his life after a long time, he was happy again. Settling back into the hug, he sighed and enjoyed his brother’s warmth. Even though the darkest parts of his mind wanted to ruin this moment, Tadashi didn’t let him think anymore as he snuggled Hiro closer. “You won’t leave, right? Not anymore?” Hiro asked gently as Tadashi nodded.

 

“Yeah,” he said softly. “I won’t leave you anymore, Hiro.”

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uh well....I hope this explains how and why Tadashi disappeared... I got help from a friend on mine with the background story, so thanks to her! Anyways, I hope you guys like it and do drop a comment by the end of this chapter! I don't know if this is a big disappointment or something that makes sense at all. //sighs// Well, I _tried_. :/ Anyways, until the next chapter! -Krystal


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Nope, not mine!
> 
>  _I believe in the lost possibilities you can see, And I believe that the darkness reminds us where the light can be_ – I Believe (Christina Perri)

 

 

 

The towering silence was huge and the outside world was moving slower. Nobody moved, but the nervousness in the air was thick and it hung on the two boys heavily. Cass was sitting in front of them, looking at them unexpectedly, wondering why there was such an awkward silence in the air. The café was closed for the day and then, Tadashi came over, his eyes looking meek and slightly scared. Hiro had come down the stairs, nodding at the man when he looked at the younger Hamada. Nobody said anything, instead, Hiro just told Cass that there was something that they needed to say to her.

 

So, she sat in front of them.

 

And she was waiting.

 

For what?

 

Hiro was sure she didn’t know what was on her way at the moment. He just prayed that she would take things better than he did—but he doubted it. His life had turned upside down once more and he took a month to recover before he could finally look in the eye of the man who was now his brother. Last night was intense; he took a long time before he could finally separate himself from his brother’s embrace. It was crawling into his mind and it showered him, the intensity of these feelings that he wasn’t used to. His logic didn’t care actually, how his brother had come back alive. His logic didn’t care if whatever the way his brother was with him at this moment could be considered as short as a miracle.

 

As much as he didn’t believe in miracles, this was something that shook him from the core.

 

Tadashi wanted to mend this. This broken trust between them and Hiro—even though reluctant at first, was cornered by Tadashi yesterday night. He listened to whatever the reasons his brother decided to disappear from his life for two years. It made sense but the silent dots behind the story didn’t. He looked at his brother and even though the silent questions asked him, he was sure he would get the answers soon. Cass sat in front of them, once again, she smiled brightly and for a while, Hiro felt guilty that it had to be today. He didn’t want to see that shimmering light in her smile dimming away and disappearing because of this.

 

He was sure, she would cry. The positivity in this situation didn’t glow well, so he prepared himself. He was sure as well, that he would be questioned. And then—she would feel slightly betrayed that her own nephew didn’t tell her about this. But he just had to suck it up. For now, this was the right thing to do. He was here, just to make sure nothing would go down badly even though there was such a huge possibility for this.

 

“So,” she started quietly. “What do you boys want to tell me?”

 

Tadashi didn’t look well. In fact, Hiro now proudly and confidently could say that he looked like he wanted to bolt from here. Just to get far away from here as possible. Hiro knew that he was feeling really ill inside, maybe even mixed with the fact that the guilt was currently blaring on his face without caution. Hiro cleared his throat a bit but he didn’t say anything. It wasn’t his place to start. This was what Tadashi had to do himself, whatever happened after this he would just have to endure it.

 

This was the price for what he did—intentional or not. Tadashi bit his inner cheek before sighing and glanced at Hiro for a moment before looking at Cass. His brown eyes glimmered a bit in recognition before he looked back to the table. “Boys?” she said, sounding slightly worried. Tadashi cleared his throat this time before he shifted in his seat a bit before straightening up.

 

“Aunt Cass,” Tadashi started, Hiro cringed at the nervousness obviously seeping through his words. Cass just nodded at him, smiling warmly, asking him to continue. She clasped her fingers on the table, sighing a bit when Tadashi didn’t continue—instead, he just stared at her. She raised her eyebrows at that before she glanced at Hiro, who was just looking at the ground. Silence once again enveloped the scene and this time, it was heavier and tenser. After a while, Cass finally sighed.

 

“Could you two just tell me what it was you wanted to tell me?” Cass asked, her voice sounding irritated. “I have dinner to prepare and as much as I like talking to you two, I can’t be late on my hot wings.”

 

Hiro bit a smile from appearing on his face as he listened to his aunt rationalising. Tadashi sighed before he nodded, running his fingers through his hair. A few seconds ticked on before he looked back at his aunt and opened his mouth. Hiro looked at him, realising that Tadashi had the words at the tip of his tongue but it didn’t come out. So, he closed his mouth once more and licked his lips.

 

“Oh for the _love_ of,” Cass groaned when she realised the silence was coming back on. “Boys? If it’s nothing that important, I’m going to the kitchen.” With that, she started to rise from her seat. Hiro panicked a bit before he kicked Tadashi’s leg from under the table. Tadashi’s eyes widened as well before he quickly stood up, mirroring Cass.

 

Before she could turn around and leave, Tadashi quickly grabbed her wrist and stopped her. “ _Don’t_ ,” he said, his voice shaking a bit. “I need to tell you something.”

 

Cass sighed. “Tadashi,” she said quietly before shaking her wrist from his grip. “I really don’t have time for this if you keep on—”

 

“ _I’m_ _Tadashi Hamada,_ Aunt Cass.”

 

Hiro slapped his forehead immediately after the words were blurted out so hurriedly. _Seriously_? Was that really something to say so short and sharp? “ _You_ —” Hiro bit out as Tadashi licked his lips and glanced at Hiro looking really guilty.

 

“She was about to leave,” Tadashi said slowly as Hiro sighed loudly.

 

“You’re going to give her a heart attack,” Hiro mumbled darkly as Tadashi winced at that.

 

“ _What_?”

 

The Hamada brothers immediately looked at Cass, who quickly tugged her wrist from Tadashi’s grasp and stood straight, her eyes wide and her mouth opening and closing. Hiro could literally see the confusion dying her eyes, taking over her for a moment before anger consumed her. “ _What_?” she asked, her voice deadly cold. Hiro looked away, knowing that this was it. Tadashi took in a sharp breath before he brought his hands to his sides.

 

“I—Aunt Cass,” he started a bit. “I—I don’t know how to tell you this, but, I guess, the shorter term would be: _I’m not dead_.”

 

Silence once again took over as Cass gripped her hands tight into a ball. “What are you talking about?” she demanded, her eyes boring heatedly into the panicked brown ones. “Tadashi, what the hell are you saying? Who’s not dead? Why are you not dead?”

 

Hiro knew the moment she caved that this was going to be hard. Tadashi was going to have a lot to explain and he did, by first sitting down. “I’m sorry,” he said slowly as Cass watched him carefully. “I’ll tell you everything. Please, just listen to me. Aunt Cass, just— _listen_ to me.”

 

“Listen to what?” she asked again. “I don’t understand what is there for you to explain!”

 

“Aunt Cass,” Hiro started. Cass shifted her gaze to the younger Hamada for a second. Her eyes searched his face before her eyes once again widened and she dropped back onto the chair, fear crowding her eyes before it was replaced with confusion. She looked back at Tadashi before she opened her mouth only for her to close it again after a beat.

 

“I don’t understand,” she said quietly as Tadashi frowned at her, but somehow that expression was aimed at himself.

 

“It was true, at first,” Tadashi started slowly. “I didn’t recognise you or Hiro even though, I could feel it deep inside that you were familiar.” Cass just furrowed her eyebrows. Tadashi noticed the look before he nodded. After a beat and a huge breath in, he said, “It started that day when SFIT exploded into fire.”

 

And then, Tadashi began to tell her the truth. Cass remained quiet, but Hiro could see the confusion fading away and a dull ache surrounded in those orbs. Tadashi had to stop at some parts before he continued but by the end of it all, Cass just looked as if someone had broken her favourite doll. She was stiff and her lips were thin and pale. She blinked but it was so slow that Hiro had to stare at her, just to make sure she was breathing. Tadashi looked really guilty, as if it was eating him from inside and Hiro knew that this was it. Sink or swim. Die or live. This was it, if Cass wasn’t reacting, then something bad was going to happen.

 

Seconds ticked on as Tadashi looked at her, searching her face, just wanting to know what she had thought but she didn’t say anything. Instead, she looked away from Tadashi and flickered her gaze to the table, her fingers trembled slightly before she clasped her hands together tightly. The thickening silence didn’t do anything else, instead it increased whatever emotions present at the moment.

 

Hiro could see that her eyes were glassy. He knew how she was feeling at the moment. Confusion, anger, despair and simple _desperation_ , those were the things that would swirl inside of her at the moment and it was taking her alive. Hiro’s heart ached when he saw how his aunt looked so lost. She didn’t know what to do, her shoulders shook silently before she took in a sharp breath. Tadashi remained quiet, looking away from her to his own hands.

 

It was so deadly, the silence. Hiro shifted in his seat before he settled down. He didn’t dare to look at them anymore. As the seconds ticked on, each moment felt as if something bigger was going to happen. Finally, Cass straightened herself and looked at Tadashi, her eyes tearing up and some of the tears escaped her eyes, sliding down her cheeks. But her face was blank. There were no emotions in her eyes.

 

“Aunt Cass—”

 

“So, it’s true?” she finally asked, her voice croaked, making Hiro wince at how rough her voice sounded. “Hiro?” she said as she looked at him.

 

Hiro nodded. “I checked his DNA,” Hiro said quietly.

 

“I see,” Cass said, her voice deadly still.

 

“Aunt Cass?” Tadashi started. His voice sounding tight and it was filled with regret. Hiro knew that he didn’t like it whenever Cass was hurt because of them. He lived his days trying to keep the people he loved happy. But precisely at this moment, he was failing miserably and Hiro knew that he disliked that. The guilt was big and heavy in him and it weighed in his mind. The younger Hamada could only wish that things would be less complicated. “Please say something,” he pleaded quietly only to have Cass laugh humourlessly. She shook her head before she pressed the palm of her hands onto her face, wiping the tears away as she sniffed.

 

“ _What_ am I supposed to _say_ , huh?” she asked, her tone sounding so dejected. “I—I’ve spent two years, _two years_ , thinking my nephew _died_. What do you expect me to do now, Tadashi?” She finally looked at him a bit before she choked out a sob, her eyes squinting and the tears took over. “God, how could I _not know_ it was you?”

 

Tadashi quickly slinked away from his seat and stood next to her. He crouched to his knees before he slowly tugged her into his arms. “Aunt Cass,” he said quietly as she wrapped her arms around Tadashi’s neck and dragged him into a hug. She sobbed loudly as Hiro watched, a soft smile tugging on his lips even though it looked grim to anyone who saw it.

 

“I should’ve known it was you,” she said. “I’m your _aunt_! And you—I’m just, I’m so confused,” Cass mumbled before she tore herself from the hug and looked at the older Hamada in the eyes. “I should’ve. I don’t know what to think anymore.”

 

Tadashi just sighed a bit before he nodded. “I’m sorry, Aunt Cass,” he said softly. “I would’ve come back, you know, if I could. But even if I did remember everything—I can’t. I have to stay dead.”

 

“Why? Because _Callaghan_ said so?” she sneered at the name as he chuckled a bit, but it sounded so lost. “Why?”

 

“Because he would’ve hurt you and Hiro,” Tadashi quickly said, catching her off guard for a moment. “I can’t, I _won’t_ let that happen. I’m sorry, I’m so sorry that I ended up hurting you and Hiro more than I wanted. I just wanted you two to be safe.” Cass searched his face for a moment before she huffed and hugged him tight once more. Hiro watched the scene unfold, feeling something warm making way into his heart.

 

The completion, the sense of completion in the air was present once again. Really, Hiro should’ve seen that coming from the moment he had felt this way. No one, not even someone who looked like Tadashi could recreate this feels. It was just as they were, like it was natural for only Tadashi to possess, this power of making things feel as if they belonged somewhere. Right now, Hiro felt belonged. After two years, after two years of not being able to grasp what was the truth, it felt complete here.

 

“I have to thank that doctor, huh?” she asked slowly as she sighed and released from the hug. “Teo Takachiho. How could I have not known? He even managed to keep you under wraps. Does he know that if Callaghan knew you’re alive, he would—”

 

“He did, he said,” Tadashi said slowly. “He said that the last thing I muttered before I passed out was not to let anyone know I’m alive or he’ll hurt them. But when I got amnesia, I was convinced that maybe I had no one after all.”

 

“He still kept you safe, even though he knows his licence could be, you know,” she continued as he nodded.

 

“He worked as Krei’s personal doctor,” Tadashi said as he recalled. “But he gave up his licence when he couldn’t save his own family. They died, Teo’s wife and son died in his hands. He was at the hospital at that time, working late night shift and he was suddenly needed at the emergency ward only to find that—the patients were his son and wife. They didn’t last long.”

 

“How did he end up in the hospital treating me?” Hiro asked, in the middle, confusion suddenly crowding his mind.

 

“Krei managed to persuade him to get back his licence after three years, and he tried. He tried to work for a day but when he saw me as his first patient and then followed by you—he gave up the licence at the end.” Cass sighed loudly before she shook her head. With that, a comfortable silence took over as Hiro pondered at the moment. That would explain why Hiro found it weird for a doctor to have so much free time in his hands.

 

“I see,” Cass said softly before she sighed. With that, she looked back at Tadashi. Her eyes still glistened with the remaining tears but now, there was a sense of acceptance. “It’s going to take time, Tadashi. It’s—I need time to actually process this. Unlike you two with massive genius brains, I need time to process this and accept this fact. But—Tadashi,” she stopped for a moment before she sighed and smiled. “ _Welcome_ _home_.”

 

* * *

 

 

“You’re going to _what_?” Tadashi asked, his eyes wide as he looked at Hiro. The younger Hamada just sighed before he rolled his eyes at the man. After the confrontation with Cass, she seemed to change back to her older self. It was as if somehow had decided to fuse a mental bulb into her eyes as they lit brightly. Hiro never saw them so happy before, not after the incident two years ago. But he knew that deep inside, she had reservations. He was feeling the same thing too. To think that this had happened to them, out of so many who had lost their lives in the fire, it was something surreal for them.

 

But after that, it was finally over, this mess. Things were finally looking bright after so long. After that, Tadashi thought it would be best if decided to head back to Teo. Tadashi knew that his aunt needed time before she can really be herself, and she didn’t object. While they were walking back to the house, the older Hamada finally asked about the progress in the case. Hiro happily filled the details out, only he accidentally slipped out about the fact that Big Hero 6 was going to break into Junko’s apartment tonight. Tadashi didn’t seem happy with that, a frown marking his lips, making his handsome face look slightly grim.

 

“Tadashi,” Hiro warned, his tone sounding whiny. “I know what you’re thinking. This time, you have to stay away. I mean it!”

 

“But Hiro,” Tadashi said, walking next to him. “Breaking and entering? And into a madman’s lair? Are you out of your mind?”

 

“Well, I can feel the love,” Hiro muttered dryly as Tadashi shot him a look. Hiro just sighed exasperatedly before looking at the man in the eyes. “Tadashi, I’ll be fine! This time, I’ll suit up since I managed to finally update my suit. Baymax will be there with Gogo, Wasabi, Fred and Honey Lemon. Nobody’s going to jump at me, okay?”

 

“I’m still not sure,” Tadashi said softly. “I mean, Hiro, I really don’t want anything to happen to you.”

 

Hiro stopped in his tracks, causing Tadashi to do the same. The younger Hamada smiled softly before he nodded. “Tadashi, I’ll be fine. I promise I’ll come home without getting hurt.”

 

Tadashi just continued to look at his younger brother, worry marking his eyes. “Trust me,” Hiro continued as he placed a hand on the man’s shoulder, squeezing it. “Please?”

 

Silence ticked on before Tadashi finally sighed in defeat. “Fine,” he said. “But, I need to hear from you after two hours. I mean it, Hiro, I remember everything now so I know how to hack into Baymax and get to you, alright?”

 

Hiro just chuckled before he dropped his hand from his shoulder and shrugged. Tadashi just eyed on him carefully. Hiro noticed the seriousness in those eyes. He didn’t need any assurance that this man would do what he said. If anything, Hamada’s were very persistent and maybe stubborn, so Tadashi, no matter how nice, did have those traits. Hiro definitely didn’t need Tadashi to barge into the scene, especially not into another fighting scene even though he desperately hoped he would get to avoid that just for tonight. He didn’t want to witness what had occurred the last time again.

 

His heart squished tightly and uncomfortably at the thought. It didn’t settle well inside the younger Hamada. He needed to keep his older brother far away from this part of his life. The less he was involved, the better the chances Tadashi had to actually stay alive longer this time. Hiro didn’t want to feel the loneliness again. He didn’t want to feel as if he was drowning in blackness and pit less darkness.

 

He needed to breathe in relief this time, not because he was glad that Tadashi had barely made it alive. No, he needed Tadashi to be safe and if it meant calling him after two hours, fine, he would do it. But under no circumstances, would he ever allow Tadashi to barge into a scene like that ever again. He wasn’t ready to handle anymore twists and turns this harsh reality wanted to throw at him. He needed a break. He just needed room to be himself again, to recover and get used to this new development in his life.

 

And for once, he actually felt like the reality was agreeing with him. Looking at the man in the eyes, Hiro nodded firmly. “I will.” Tadashi visibly sighed at that in relief before they continued to walk once more until they reached Teo’s house.

 

“Just, be careful, alright?” Tadashi said before Hiro took off.

 

“I’ll be fine,” Hiro promised. “You, on the other hand, stay away. I mean it. If I find out you were anywhere near the crime scene, Tadashi, I’ll—”

 

But Tadashi didn’t let him finish his sentence. Before Hiro could comprehend what was happening, Tadashi had placed a hand at the back of Hiro’s neck and pulled him close, almost making the younger Hamada trip and fall. With that, Tadashi planted a kiss on the top of Hiro’s head before he let the boy go with a childish grin. “I won’t if you keep your promise.” Hiro blushed at that but he couldn’t help but to grin back at the display of affection, his heart tugging happily.

 

“Okay.”

 

* * *

 

 

They stared at the apartment door, looking around occasionally hoping nobody was around. “Are you—Gogo, are you _sure_ this is his apartment?” Wasabi asked, sounding as if he either wanted to laugh or wanted to choke out in mortification. Gogo quickly looked at the address before nodding. Baymax was behind them, keeping an eye out for anyone else. Hiro almost didn’t believe it either. This place, the apartment building itself didn’t seem fit for someone like Junko, who, Hiro was sure, had millions in his bank account.

 

“Dude, such an ugly apartment,” Fred commented, sounding like he was about to burst out laughing in any minute. This apartment building looked like it was about to collapse at any moment and it was secluded, a bit far away from the main city of San Fransokyo. It was like in a remote area, only that Hiro wasn’t so sure if anybody else was living in this building besides Junko.

 

Honey just looked at her tablet before she looked back at her friends, nodding to confirm. “He should be out for the annual dinner with his family, he shouldn’t be back any time soon. But we have to hurry.” Gogo nodded before she took a step forward and looked at the lock. She grinned before she took out two pins she kept in her pants and started to pick the lock. Hiro just raised an eyebrow at her before looking away to see if anyone else was there around them. They couldn’t afford any more delays, and witnesses. The door looked so old, as if someone could’ve just pushed it open without any resistance from the lock. The hinges were old and rusty and not to mention, it looked as if somebody decided that safety locks weren’t important.

 

He couldn’t wrap his mind around why Junko would live in such a state but then again, he wondered why not? This was the perfect spot to keep away from anybody’s suspicion. Hiro nodded internally before he heard a faint click as Gogo stood up and nodded at everyone. With that, Hiro took a step forward and cautiously touched the door, testing out the handle before he took in a deep breath.

 

“Baymax,” Hiro called out as Baymax immediately gave him the attention needed. “Scan for threats or any wired alarms behind this door.”

 

Baymax took only a few seconds, beaming up his blue grid and concluded out a solution after analysing everything inside. “Negative, Hiro. It is safe inside.”

 

With that, Hiro quickly opened the door and pushed it inside. Immediately they were greeted with a strong smell of metal and oil, filling out from the room. Hiro had to close his nose for a moment before he sighed, trying to inhale a bit of the smell, wincing at the sharpness. He looked at his friends, only for them to have the same face as he had on. Scrunching his nose a bit, he took a tentative step forward and looked around, noticing how the space was small. It wasn’t even an apartment sized room. Hiro shook his head slightly as he looked around, sneaking around to find some kind of clue.

 

His friends didn’t waste any time either as they snooped around, making sure they take caution not to mess things permanently that could ward off suspicions. As Hiro looked around, he finally noticed a blue print underneath a bunch of books. He frowned at that before he gingerly took the blue print without messing the books up and scanned over it only to take a gasp. “Guys,” he quickly ushered as Gogo came up next to him, followed by the rest in a hurry. “Look at this.”

 

They took a long time, staring at the paper in front of them before Hiro sighed. “That’s why he broke into the electronic shop. He needed more parts to fix his suit and complete it.”

 

“The other two, the banks and the jewellery,” Wasabi started. “They were actually his supply of cash.”

 

“The rich boy lost his money because his father cut him off,” Gogo started before grinning. “So, he decided to take the money and cash in a different way.”

 

“Quite boring, though,” Hiro muttered, somehow sounding a bit disappointed at the revelation. He really thought Junko was going to be this evil mastermind trying to take over San Fransokyo. It would’ve earned him some points for creativity but then again, he was also relived. At least this didn’t propose to be such a problem after all. He only earned a half-smack at his shoulder before he looked at Gogo and grinned.

 

“But how do we stop him? His next target is the pawn shop,” Honey said as she pointed to a red marking on the blue print. Hiro peered at it closely before he bit his bottom lip.

 

“Yeah, man,” Fred said. “He has these fancy inventions, remember?”

 

“We can’t even manipulate electricity!” Wasabi joined in before Hiro flashed back to the bot fight, how he had managed to get the bot to fall and explode. He felt like he wanted to hit his head against the wall. Of course, that was the way to stop him! Hiro had stopped him once and he should be able to do it once more. Why didn’t the thought ever cross his mind until now? He was such a loser sometimes, he muttered in his brain lamely. Grinning, he quickly looked back at his friends.

 

“I know how to defeat him,” he said as Gogo raised an eyebrow at him, but neither of them said anything else, waiting for him to go on. Before he could open his mouth to continue, Baymax had wobbled into the room, his computer beeping.

 

“Baymax?” Hiro questioned as Baymax pointed to his screen. Hiro looked down and immediately took a step back when he saw who it was on the screen.

 

“ _Tadashi_?” he questioned. Gogo couldn’t help but to smile at him before looking at Hiro.

 

“You guys are cool, huh?” Fred asked only for the two brothers to look at him with a raised eyebrow. Tadashi at the end just shrugged and smiled widely, the smile shining brightly enough to blind someone from other side of the screen. Hiro frowned at him before he gestured to the room.

 

“How?” he asked.

 

“I told you, didn’t I, Hiro?” he questioned, sounding slightly amused. Hiro looked at his wrist watch and sighed.

 

“Tadashi,” he started off. “It’s only been an hour,” Hiro ended with a quirk of his eyebrows. Tadashi just sighed before shrugging.” “I’m fine! I’ll contact you like I promised, alright?” Hiro ignored the looks his friends were giving, trying his best not to take something and throw a tantrum right there and then. He knew his brother was worried and it definitely warmed his heart that he had once more someone that was worried for him but now, it was so not the time.

 

“Fine,” he said finally. “Contact me when you’re done, okay? I just needed to see you,” he said quietly at the end, causing Hiro to shuffle awkwardly on his feet before nodding. “I’ll go now. Take care.” With that, the screen went blank and an awkward silence took over. He looked at his friends who were looking at him with an amused look on his face. He just snorted at them before rolling his eyes at him.

 

“What?” he asked as Gogo shook her head.

 

“We’ll talk later but for now, let’s get what we can from here and leave,” she quickly said before anybody else started to ask questions. “It’s confirmed then, Junko is our man.”

 

“Yeah,” Hiro said. “I know how to defeat him too.”

 

“How?” Honey asked as he grinned, the Hamada’s confidence radiating from him.

 

“I’ve never been so glad I’ve been to a bot fight before.”

 

* * *

 

 

“ _Stuffing_?” Wasabi asked in disbelief. “What do you mean, stuffing?”

 

“I mean,” Hiro started as they crowded him around his lab. After the break in, they quickly left hoping there were no traces that they were there. They found out a lot about the thief from this break in and Hiro couldn’t help but to feel like he was one step closer in solving this paradox that had been bugging him for so long. If only he had taken a better look into the man’s eyes, the fiery orange would’ve been a dead giveaway to him. He would’ve solved this puzzle a long time ago, but he didn’t, so there was no use on pondering this now. “When the last time I met him at the bot fight, I managed to destroy his bot by stuffing my bot’s parts around the output terminals. It stopped the electricity flow and accumulated the energy inside until it exploded.”

 

“But wouldn’t that be dangerous?” Honey asked as Hiro shrugged.

 

“And how do we even find the holes? He seems to want to attack only in the dark and with that suit on like some ninja, we can’t find any holes!” Wasabi added as Hiro nodded at them. He frowned a bit as he leaned into his chair. After that, the next day, they crowded in his lab to discuss this further. He even had to call Tadashi by the end of it all, scared that the man wouldn’t trust him anymore if he didn’t. They didn’t talk much yesterday night, just some updates and confirmation about things. Since Tadashi had classes today, Hiro finally settled around to discuss this further with his teams in his lab.

 

The only problem right now was to try and find the holes. He also had to figure out how to actually accumulate the energy so instead of killing Junko, it would cause him to momentarily get shocked enough for him to faint. Hiro looked through his mind, trying to find a suitable weapon to be created when Fred piqued up.

 

“Dudes, what if we made something like a sticker?”

 

Immediately, everyone gave him a look. Hiro just chuckled, pondering the thought a bit when it suddenly made sense somehow. “A sticker?”

 

“Yeah, like since we can’t see the holes to block, why not a sticker to cause electricity to accumulate without stuffing any holes,” Fred continued. “We can redirect the electricity into one point. Like a strong conductor and absorber.”

 

“Ah,” Honey Lemon said as Hiro nodded. “That makes sense. But the next attack is tonight.”

 

“We can do it,” Hiro said quickly. “It’s not hard to manipulate metals to my liking,” Hiro said with a grin.

 

“I’ll help too,” a voice said as the lab door slid opened, revealing Tadashi, looking at them with a smile. “Can I?”

 

“Tadashi,” Gogo said as Tadashi chuckled.

 

Wasabi looked at him for a while before nodding, smiling at him. Fred just chuckled meanwhile Honey Lemon grinned widely, beaming at the sight of him. Hiro didn’t show any emotions, in fact, a sincere smile simply took over his face before nodding at him. “It seems you two made up after all,” Wasabi teased only to have Hiro rolling his eyes at him.

 

“Not really a hundred percent alright,” he said as he glanced at the older Hamada. Tadashi just nodded. “But we’re getting there.”

 

“I bet it,” Gogo agreed before she looked back at the table. “Alright, let’s get to it.”

 

* * *

 

 

They waited. The night dulled and they knew that this was somehow the next stop, the pawn shop nearby the empty corners of the city. It was almost late at night, the sun had gone down and the stars had come out, playing around with the lush light of the moon. Hiro waited silently, all suit up with his friends, crowding each corner of the street, waiting for something to blow up. Tadashi wasn’t allowed to follow, Hiro had decided that if he needed to help, he could help track down the thief now knowing who he really was. If he got away, Tadashi would know where he disappeared to and they needed an insight like that.

 

It took some convincing, but Tadashi finally agreed. They had actually stayed at the lab, making way with the calculations and Tadashi feeding them with more ideas. It took them a few hours before testing out the prototype. This was the fastest invention they had managed to do and they didn’t have time to make another one after they found out that the prototype worked perfectly. It was like a sticker and just like Fred had imagined, it would work once it was pasted on the theif’s back.

 

After that, it was just the waiting game. In the middle of it, their friends questioned about the now truth behind their brotherly bond and where it would lead them next. Hiro just answered them, Tadashi playing along with them and yet being all sincere at the end. After that, they managed to part ways and here they were, waiting for the last show to occur.

 

“Is he _going_ to show up?” Wasabi asked, his voice buzzing in Hiro’s ears. They wore an earpiece, just trying to keep each other in communication. Hiro looked around from his corner. Before he could open his mouth to respond, a huge bang filled the air, once again the big fire was curled up into a ball before disappearing, an invisible shield taking over before dying off. And hopped out from the hole was the thief himself.

 

“He’s here,” Hiro said as Baymax immediately scooted closer to him.

 

“Be careful, guys, especially you, Hiro,” Tadashi’s voice rung out clearly as Hiro huffed out and rolled his eyes, even though he felt the slight tremors of warmth basking him from within. Before the man could even move or take the next step, Hiro had signalled Honey Lemon to start off with her stunt. She quickly dashed and tossed the exploding balls to Gogo, who took it and zoomed into the scene, roller blading with her now advanced suit and before the thief could react, she had aimed the balls at his feet and shot it.

 

The balls exploded and grew into a huge lump of goo, hardening immediately when touched with air, making it hard for the thief to move. Hiro thought he saw the look of annoyance flashing on the theif’s face but he doubted so. The thief was covering everything in black and unless Hiro could see through clothes, he doubted he knew what the thief was feeling. The neon electricity surged up through his hands and formed a sharp knife on his fists, quickly ready for any attacks.

 

“Wasabi, take him down,” Hiro commanded as he checked if the sticker patch was with him. This would be their only chance and if he didn’t do this right, they would simply lose the thief forever. Wasabi immediately did what he was told, Hiro taking off from the corner with Baymax following close behind. Hiro just needed an opening. The thief quickly stopped Wasabi by holding out Wasabi’s own weapons, trying to land a blow on him. The thief wasn’t in the mood to dilly dally either as he suddenly started to shutter. Hiro’s eyes widened when he suddenly appeared behind Wasabi and slammed his back, causing Wasabi to hurl down to the floor with a gasp in pain.

 

“Did you see that?” Fred questioned. “Like a ninja.”

 

“Woah,” Hiro said as fear crawled into his mind. How in the world was he going to get the sticker on him now if he kept on disappearing like this? Honey didn’t waste time as she tried to hit his legs again with the balls only for the thief to disappear once more and reappear elsewhere in the matter of seconds.

 

“This is going to be harder than I thought,” Gogo cursed out as she took out her discs and tried to aim it at him, only to have the disc hitting a wall. Before she could react, the thief reappeared behind her and swept her off her feet, causing her to fall on her face.

 

“Baymax, scan his moves and predict them,” Hiro hurriedly commanded. Baymax did as he was told only to come out with a blank prognosis.

 

“It seems that I am unable to do so, Hiro,” Baymax said. “He has an enormous amount of electricity surging through him though and this causes him to have multiple burns in his skin every time he disappears and reappear.”

 

Hiro took in the information before he nodded. “Tadashi, do you think you can track him even when he disappears off?”

 

Tadashi remained quiet from the other side before a sigh came on. “Yeah, I think I can. He doesn’t really disappear, Hiro. It’s just a distraction. I’ll let you know when he comes near and what he’ll do next. Just keep alert.” Hiro quickly engaged himself as he ordered Baymax to hit the thief. Like he predicted, the thief once again disappeared but this time, Hiro was prepared. “He’s appearing right behind you.”

 

Before the thief could land a blow, Hiro immediately moved away, quickly ordering Baymax to give out a strong punch, causing the thief to fly off to the ground. “Guys, just follow Tadashi’s instruction. He knows when the thief will appear.”

 

“Got it,” Honey Lemon said followed by the others. “I’ll attempt to immobilise him, Tadashi,” she said seriously from the earpiece.

 

“Alright,” Tadashi confirmed. Honey Lemon then took off, giving some of the balls to Gogo who was faster than her, already recovering from the bruise on her forehead from the fall. The thief quickly stood up and before really planting his feet on the ground, disappeared once more. “At two o’ clock, Honey.”

 

Honey quickly moved out of the way before she threw the ball at his feet, catching the thief off guard and keeping him planted on the ground. The thief didn’t stop, instead, he growled out before he took out his weapons, buzzing blue neon electricity sizzling at the ends before he threw it at the two of them. Hiro quickly tried to dodge them as some of the weapons flew towards him. Baymax kept his distance close to the younger Hamada as Hiro sighed. “Fred, you there? You think you can fry away the weapons?”

 

“Yeah,” Fred said as he appeared, finally engaging himself into the battle. The thief spotted him, taking out ten knives, five in each hand before throwing them at Fred. What Hiro didn’t expect was for the ten knives to fuse together, making out a huge kunai with a sharp, strong-ending tip filled with heavy voltage of electricity enough to kill someone.

 

“Watch out!” Wasabi yelled through the earpiece as Fred engaged his fire, trying to melt the weapon. It turned out that it worked, immediately causing the weapon to disarray and dismantle, dropping to the floor with a lifeless clank. Fred had never felt so relieved in his life as he looked at Hiro and nodded.

 

“Distraction, distract him while I get the sticker on him,” Hiro said finally as they got onto their last plan. Gogo didn’t waste her time as she took her discs and aimed it at him once more, this time clashing with the knives and shurikens meanwhile Wasabi tried to land a blow on him. With every side attacking the thief, Hiro, with the help of Baymax approached him hopefully undetected. Once Hiro was close enough, he immediately took out the sticker and took in a deep breath.

 

 _Here goes nothing_ , he muttered in his mind before finally raising his hand to slam the sticker down. Before he could do it though, the thief immediately twisted his body slightly before grabbing onto the younger Hamada’s wrist and pulling him next to him, an arm looped around his neck and a knife, close and sizzling aimed at his temple. Baymax didn’t calculate how fast he had taken Hiro and stood still, sensing a threat.

 

Finally, the mask came off. The thief sighed before he pressed onto a button on his wrist that was holding a chokehold on Hiro and the mask dismantled from his face, revealing Junko, smiling twistedly at them despite his face looked slightly burned from too much voltage his suit was giving out. His friends seized their attacks as he heard Tadashi’s sharp intake of breath from the earpiece. Hiro knew that his brother was watching him, and this was a very bad timing.

 

“Well, I really wanted to leave without killing anybody,” Junko drawled out with a menacing laugh. “But it seems you lot won’t let me do that.”

 

“Let him go,” Wasabi seethed out only for the sizzling knife to come close to Hiro’s temple once again.

 

“Why?” Junko mocked. “This _brat_ ,” he said as he tightened his chokehold on Hiro, causing the younger Hamada to gag for air, his hands trembling a bit as he tried to keep his mind in focus. “Dug into this mess when he destroyed my bot.”

 

“A- _agh_ , lame— _ah_ , bot t-though,” Hiro corrected only for the chokehold to tighten a bit more, causing him to make some strangled noises.

 

“Don’t _tempt_ me,” Junko warned. “And besides, you guys can’t beat me. I’m the billionaire’s son. I won’t get sentenced like normal people.”

 

“Really?” Gogo said. “A son who no longer has his father’s protection is surely real smug at the moment.”

 

Junko frowned at her for a moment before he shrugged. “Well, bot fighting is illegal, but that didn’t stop me from winning until this brat came along and showed me the weakness. And then my father found out and he stopped giving me the funds that I deserve. So, here I am, wrecking away with my knowledge and once I get enough money, I’ll drive the old man down to the ground.”

 

Hiro let Junko ramble on, his mind calculating in the speed of light. His hand still grasped onto the sticker tight before finding out that he had a clear spot on, the middle of the suit, the chest. With that, he looked carefully at his friends, nodding at them as much as he could before he slammed the sticker onto the man’s chest. Immediate pain washed over the man’s face as he released the chokehold and Hiro dodged out, running to Baymax as the nurse bot dragged the younger Hamada far away from there. Junko furrowed his eyebrows in pain when the blue neon electricity surging through him stopped and disappeared.

 

“W— _what_?” he croaked out as the sticker started to vibrate and glow in light blue, causing Junko to yell out even more in pain. He finally dropped to the ground on his knees as his hands and legs stiffened. Hiro watched as the sticker glowed brighter and brighter, causing the man to writhe in pain before his eyes rolled upwards like a spasm and finally, the light blue light disappeared, causing Junko to go limp and fall on the ground with a soft groan. A shuddering silence accompanied the scene afterwards.

 

Hiro took in deep breaths after witnessing the scene before he felt the dizziness getting to him. His brain couldn’t conjure what was happening and white spots appeared in his vision. “Hiro!” Honey Lemon exclaimed as Hiro fell to the ground on his back, blinking out to get the dots away from his vision. Baymax immediately did a scan on him before saying out the prognosis.

 

“Hiro is experiencing lack of oxygen due to the chokehold. However, his throat did not get damaged even though it was bruised and still needs medical attention,” Baymax said as Hiro chuckled out a bit, wincing at the pain around his throat. His throat felt like it was on fire. The numbness settled around where Junko had almost strangled him. He took in deep breaths, trying to hold out the pain every time he did, just wanting to get enough oxygen for the dizziness to disappear.

 

“Hiro?” Tadashi’s voice rung out as Hiro closed his eyes tight. The darkness swam into his vision, calming him down for a moment before he slowly opened them up, smiling slightly when he finally could see clearly.

 

“Y-yeah,” Hiro said, once again feeling raspy at the rough tone of his voice. “I’m fine,” he croaked out as he slowly sat up, his dizziness fading away to the back as he looked at his friends. Gogo just sighed in relief before she looked back at the unconscious Junko. “Did you call the police?”

 

“Already done it,” Tadashi informed as his voice sounded light and relaxed. “Are you sure you’re fine, Hiro?”

 

“Didn’t you hear what Baymax said?” Hiro asked as he chuckled a bit despite the pain. “I’m fine. Just a bruise, that’s all.”

 

“That was brave of you, Hiro,” Wasabi said as Hiro shook his head.

 

“Nah,” he said before sighing. “It’s finally over, huh?”

 

His question was answered when the distant sound of the police sirens wailed on. The sound of ambulance was also coming in closer and for a second, he felt really relaxed. Finally everything was over. Junko was captured, the thief was discovered, he got his brother back. Hiro slowly stood up, wobbly on his two feet before he leaned into Baymax who was standing next to him. “Hiro, you need rest,” Baymax said as Hiro chuckled and nodded.

 

“Yeah,” Hiro said softly.

 

“Hospital first thought,” Tadashi warned as Hiro rolled his eyes.

 

“Yeah, yeah,” Hiro said as he looked at his friends, who were smiling back at him. “It’s over.”

 

Tadashi just chuckled over the line. “Yeah. It is, Hiro. It finally is.”

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _Ahhhh_ , well, this is it! After this is the epilogue. I believe I have answered all the questions and the case is closed, don't you think? I had so much fun writing this chapter even though, I had trouble a bit with Tadashi's confession to his aunt. I also think I did badly on the fighting scene, like _always_ but I hope it managed to keep you thoroughly enticed. :D The epilogue is just basically going to be the aftermath of this and we'll see how everyone is. Ya, so besides that, this is already heading for an end. I don't know what else to keep this going and honestly, this is the first time I managed to finish a fan fiction without dragging on~ xD Yay me. So, anyways, thank you guys for the wonderful comments and kudos, reads and subscriptions and I hope you guys will like this chappie too! Do let me know what you guys thought at the end of this chapter~! Until the last chapter! -Krystal


	12. Epilogue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Not mine~ Yada Yada
> 
>  _If you can wait till I get home, Then I swear come tomorrow, this will all be in our past_ – A Day to Remember (If It Means A Lot To You)

 

**8 Months Later…**

 

 

 

“Hiro, you’re not helping with this!”

 

“Well, it’s not my fault you wanted to bake! You can’t cook!”

 

“Cooking and baking are two different things!”

 

“Too bad your skills still suck.”

 

An exasperated huff left the man’s lips as he held onto the fire extinguisher in his hand. Black puffs now slowly changed into a mist, colouring the kitchen before a short bubbles of laughter escaped the lips of the shorter one among the two. “Really, Hiro? You think this is funny?” the man asked even though amusement filled his tone. A few seconds the laughter stopped before both brown eyes met, and just like that, they both ended up laughing, trying to catch their breath in middle.

 

Hiro ended up buckling to the ground, his legs giving out on him. He quickly grasped the counter to support him but his laughter didn’t die. “T-This is ju-just _precious_!” he ended up barking out the words in mid-laugh before both Hamadas calmed down. “J-just look at us!”

 

Tadashi finally tried to take in a huge breath before he placed the fire extinguisher on the ground and slid himself until he sat on the floor. Leaning his back against the counter, he slowly took in a deep breath once more, letting the remains of his laughter to turn into a fit of chuckles before sighing. Hiro touched his stomach and pressed it, feeling it pain due to laughing too much. With that, he glanced at the remains of what they tried to bake. Another course of bubbly laughter escaped his lips before he tried to settle himself down.

 

Hiro smiled after that, letting his lips stretch before his eyes landed on his brother. He leaned against the counter and sighed relaxed. It had been eight months since Junko. It had been eight months since he found a man who looked exactly like his dead brother—to only know, in the end it was his real brother. It had been eight months since Hiro felt like his life was content.

 

 _Eight months_.

 

He mused in his mind gently as he thought about what they had done until now.

 

Tadashi, he spent more time with Hiro, trying to mend whatever cracked between them and the younger Hamada, even though honestly was still awkward about it, let him. He learned that Tadashi had excelled well in his classes. Even though he never got to graduate from SFIT in robotics, he was determined to graduate under Biomed. He wanted to be helping people and since now he had two degree—well, _more or less_ two degrees under his belt, he wanted to use the knowledge he had for good. Hiro couldn’t be any less proud of him.

 

Cass was improving too. She would be wary of Tadashi sometimes at first, but then, she slowly accepted him even though she was still trying to get a reality check once in a while. Truth to be told, Hiro was too. He didn’t want to wake up one day and realise, that this was all just some dream and he had actually been in a terribly long coma. That thought really did scare him from within but then, Tadashi would do something, like kissing the top of his head or would simply jab him on his cheek or arm and Hiro would realise that no, he wasn’t dreaming.

 

Tadashi would then try to help Cass around the café and she would gladly bond with him through this activity. She also enjoyed Teo’s presence. He came by later on after Junko’s incident to talk to Cass alone, to explain his actions and that he really wanted to protect him. He didn’t mean to keep Tadashi away and Cass understood. She was cautious with the man though but after Teo appearing at the café’s doorstep every Saturday morning for a cup of coffee and Cass’s pastries, she warmed up to him.

 

Hiro had never seen such a huge brilliant smile on her lips before and her eyes were practically shimmering. The younger Hamada couldn’t say that it was awkward on her, instead the look fit her. But he couldn’t bring himself to actually witness the reason to why she was so giddy. It was always whenever Teo was around and honestly, it made Hiro nauseous. Tadashi just chuckled, patting the younger Hamada on the shoulder, saying that it was normal.

 

Hiro thought it was weird. Normal, sure, but it was _weird_.

 

His friends, they would stop by once in a while and they would hang around with Tadashi, once again familiarising themselves with the man after two years of his absence. Gogo would just catch Hiro’s eyes once in a while, smiling at him and he would find himself smiling back, knowing exactly what she was saying. As for Junko, well, he was no longer heard off but the trial was on. Closed trial, the news reported.

 

Now, here they were, in the kitchen, trying to bake something for Cass. For reasons unknown, Tadashi had told Hiro he wanted to bake a cake for their aunt. Hiro laughed at the idea, dismissing it immediately only to find that Tadashi had dragged him into the mess later on. With a shrug, realising that it couldn’t be that hard to bake one cake, he gave it a shot. He helped Tadashi with the measurements and the older Hamada did the mixing.

 

But somehow, the flour didn’t mix well with the wet ingredients and there was a whole lot of fuss what one tablespoon meant. They had different sizes of spoon here and Hiro ended up bickering with Tadashi on which spoon was actually a tablespoon. At the end, they were covered with flour, placing the batter in the oven only to realise that the temperature was too high and they left it too long to bake.

 

Hiro guessed that it was his fault that they didn’t monitor the cake properly. He was busy trying to drink the fresh milk without a cup and Tadashi had tried to stop him. At the end, the carton was squished between two palms and the milk splattered across the two Hamadas’ faces. After that, Hiro sighed and looked at Tadashi with a smile before they decided to take a shower. They underestimated the oven’s capability at the end and when they dashed into the kitchen after hearing the alarm go off, they found out that the oven was creating some black smoke.

 

Now, here they were.

 

“You’re staring,” Tadashi said amused as Hiro focused his gaze on the man and chuckled.

 

“I suppose you’re flattered then?” Hiro teased as Tadashi shrugged before sighing loudly. “So much for the cake,” Hiro continued after a moment, only to receive a look from his older brother. “What?” he questioned innocently only for Tadashi to shake his head.

 

“You’re unbelievable,” Tadashi commented. Hiro chuckled once more before he slinked down to the ground and scooted closer to his brother. He then leaned his back against the counter, sighing in content.

 

“You love me anyway,” Hiro retorted. Tadashi laughed a bit before he nodded and looked at Hiro.

 

“That’s true,” he said with a silly grin. Hiro glanced at him before he felt himself smiling back.

 

“But we can’t cook squat,” Hiro commented lightly.

 

“Baking is not cooking,” Tadashi said, this time sounding slightly whiny.

 

“ _Fine_ ,” Hiro finally said. “We can’t cook or bake squat.”

 

“Now, with that, I agree.”

 

Hiro laughed as Tadashi kept an amused smile on his face. “Why did you want to make something for Aunt Cass?” Hiro finally asked, the question sounding slightly awkward. Tadashi sighed loudly before he smiled.

 

“I never really did anything for her, you know,” he said softly. Hiro just furrowed his eyebrows deep, a confused frown making way on his lips.

 

“That’s not true,” he quickly shot back. “You made her proud so many times even I lost count.”

 

Tadashi raised a hand before he placed it on Hiro’s head, messing up the younger Hamada’s already messy hair. Tadashi sat himself straighter before he looked at his younger brother in the eyes. “Hiro,” he said slowly, Hiro immediately realised that this gesture, despite it as it was, had a deeper meaning to it. “I don’t have anyone else to call as my family besides you and Aunt Cass. And, sure, I’m alive, I’ve made her proud but—she deserves much more. She took care both of us after our parents died. And even though I love her very much, it would still mean something to me if I did something for her, you know?”

 

“Like a gesture, a gratitude for what she’s done?” Hiro clarified as Tadashi nodded.

 

“More or less like that,” he said with a smile. “It just—I’ve made her cry. I’ve made you cry, countless times since all of this started. It’s just to keep me feeling less guilty of myself.”

 

Hiro touched his older brother’s hand on his head and smiled assuring. “Everything’s alright now.”

 

Tadashi didn’t respond to that but he nodded. “I know that. And everything’ll be alright from now on.”

 

Hiro just grinned at that and huffed out after a while. Before he could open his mouth to continue anything, a voice from the kitchen doorway made both boys freeze. “What in the _world_ happened to my kitchen?”

 

Immediately, both brothers snapped their gaze at the door to see Cass, standing there with her arms crossed against her chest, raising an eyebrow at them. “Aunt Cass!” Hiro grinned out only to be shot an annoyed look from his aunt.

 

“What’s,” she started gesturing to the mess at the counter. “All of this? And what in the _monstrosity_ is _that_?” she asked once more as she pointed at the blackened mass of what was supposed to be a cake on the counter. Tadashi chuckled nervously before he slowly got up, retreating his hands to his sides.

 

“Uhm, well,” Tadashi began. “I wanted to bake you a cake but _uh_ —we don’t really have magic fingers like you do.” Hiro got up as well, joining his brother before nodding, the grin still on his face. Cass relaxed a moment with that as she sighed, the irritation from her face gone. She let her hands to drop around her sides as she walked towards them. A soft smile tugging at her lips as she looked at the now burnt cake.

 

“Well, you guys certainly don’t have the talent for baking,” she said slowly and after a beat she added, “Or _cooking_.”

 

“Yes, Aunt Cass,” Hiro said. “We know that now.”

 

“Did you burn my oven?” she asked as she stared at the blackened areas outside of her oven. “Good god, _seriously_?” she asked as she looked back at the two brothers, now with a sheepish look on their faces. Cass just chuckled before she shook her head. “For big brains like you two, this is certainly a hard task, huh?”

 

“Tadashi just wanted to bake a cake for you,” Hiro said. “But—well, this is all we have to offer.”

 

Cass couldn’t help but to smile wider at that before she sighed. “You guys don’t have to do anything like this, you know,” she said softly as her eyes landed on Tadashi and at Hiro. “I love you guys anyway.”

 

“Aww, mushy,” Hiro teased only to get a nudge from Tadashi. Cass just laughed a bit before she walked towards them closer and tugged them both into a hug. She sighed as they hugged back, enjoying the completion hanging in the air. “I love you too, Aunt Cass,” Hiro finally said as she nodded, tears welling up in her eyes for a moment.

 

“I love you too,” Tadashi added after a seconds before she nodded into the hug.

 

She then finally released them before she wiped her eyes and sniffed, looking around the kitchen once more. “But,” she started. “That doesn’t mean you guys escape from cleaning this. So, clean up and _maybe_ we’ll have hot wings for dinner.”

 

“Ah, do I have to clean up too?” Hiro asked as Tadashi rolled his eyes at him.

 

“You’re my partner in crime too, Hiro,” the older Hamada pointed out. “Sorry buddy, that’s like in the package,” Tadashi shot back playfully, already beginning to clean up. After a second, Hiro’s shoulder dropped and he nodded begrudgingly, taking a wet towel to start cleaning up as well. Cass just watched them for a moment before she chuckled and shook her head.

 

“ _Oh_!” she said, stopping at the kitchen entrance looking back at the boys. “Teo’s joining too.” With that she walked away, leaving Hiro and Tadashi to stop and stare at what happened before Hiro scrunched his nose at the thought of what was happening between the doctor and his aunt.

 

“I’m _so_ not cut out for this,” Hiro muttered under his breath as Tadashi laughed.

 

“Let’s just clean up,” the older Hamada said as Hiro relaxed his face and nodded. Looking at his brother once more, he couldn’t help but to feel the warmth filling up from inside. The loneliness, the pain, the darkness, it disappeared and now, what was left inside of his chest was this numbing sensation from too much light. It felt good though and he never wanted this too end. With that, he continued to do his work. He didn’t think this would happen for him but it did. He didn’t think that he would get to see his brother alive again. Some parts of him were convinced that the day he would get to see his brother again was the day he died. And to think, that he had also wished one more time to look at his brother in the eyes and tell him how much Hiro loved him.

 

A spark of warmth once again took over his body as he looked at the back of his brother, who had now hunched shoulders forwards, trying to clean up the counter. “Hey, Tadashi?” Hiro called out to the man who just hummed out as a response, not stopping with his cleaning up. “ _I love you_.”

 

The motions stopped and Tadashi immediately looked at him, staring at those brown eyes. Hiro looked back at him, a sense of warmth flooding between them once more before Tadashi broke the silence and smiled.

 

“I love you too, Hiro.”

 

“Forever?” Hiro found himself asking as Tadashi chuckled nodded.

 

“ _Always_ as long as you return the sentiment,” he said without hesitation before he continued on working. Hiro felt his heart tugging at the words before he broke his smile into a goofy grin. His heart hummed out the response as he nodded physically. Tadashi caught that nod and he couldn’t help but to shake his head slightly at that, knowing exactly what it meant.

 

_Always and forever._

 

 

**The End**

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _**Weeelllllll...**_ The end! I hope the epilogue sufficed. I wanted to keep the lightness and the conclusion all rolled into one. I had so much fun writing this fan fiction and it actually is a bit sad to end this. I actually had the whole plot planned out from the beginning and with the help of a friend with the tiny minor plot holes, I managed to pull this off. _I think..._. You guys have been awesome all this while with the comments and the kudos, the reads and the subscriptions and really, it kept me motivated to finish this fan fiction. Phew, the first one I've been dedicated in a long time. I just wish there was some kind of private message here so I could be acquinted with you guys even after this fan fiction ended. Maybe we can talk through FFNet. I have my link on my profile if you want to talk to me. Har har, being absolute weirdo now. Anyways, thank you guys once again! I hope you guys enjoyed this story and liked this chapter. Do comment below to let me know what are your thoughts overall or your thoughts of this chappie. :))
> 
> Oh, oh! And oh! I don't know if this story is still under [M/M] or not. I mean, this does have some referenced but mild incest right? Maybe? No? I consider this Hidashi though, maybe, the deep brotherly deep, did I mention, deep? brotherly bond thing. Not sure, so let me know if I did tick the right category or if I have to change it to something else. Thank you again! See you guys! -Krystal


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